Pokémon: Kyanite Version
by Anime crazed girl
Summary: Welcome to the Tōhoku Region, a new region with old Pokemon. Kyani is the odd daughter of the Professor and a mastermind at Pokemon, but not anything else. Can a newfound friend trying to fight for his home help her by teaching him about Pokemon?
1. Meeting Her

●○●_**Pokémon: Kyanite Version ●○●**_

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><p>First off, thank you for having some interest in reading this story. The following are notes that <em><strong>MUST<strong>_ be read to help you through this story.

One; This does NOT have Ash and Co. in it. There are references to him, but this Pokémon story is set in an entirely new region with new characters, but old school Pokémon.

Two; Pokémon is owned by Nintendo and Satoshi Tajiri. I own the plot and characters.

Three; Everyone is an OC. Do not expect me to write in Ash merely because you want me to.

The most important note you will read for this story: Please, I cannot stress enough, _**PLEASE**_ respect the fact that I have spent an entire year working on this story. There are blood, sweat, and tears in the characters and their development along with the plotline.

PLEASE THINK BEFORE YOU REVIEW.

I know that things will be confusing, especially with characters you cannot see, so if there is confusion, please PM me. I will do my best to clear up any confusion and answer questions. Other than that, please enjoy! :)

_Name Pronunciation:_ This section will always be included should a new character appear in a chapter and will be done in order of appearance.

Kyani Willow: Kai-ah-knee Willow Fayal Ushiwaka: Fay-all Oo-she-wah-ka

Fiori Ushiwaka: Fee-or-ee Colby Brandt: Coal-bee Brand-tuh(subtle)

Nikolai Merensky: Nick-oh-lie Mer-en-ski Malachi Solomon: Mal-ah-kai Solomon

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><p><em>●○● Prologue ●○●<em>

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><p>Well, I wasn't expecting a guest so soon, but nevertheless, it's nice to meet you. My name is Kyani Willow and I'm the Pokémon Professor of the Tōhoku Region. I live in the quiet town of Ante Town, the town you're in right now.<p>

…What's that? You don't know what a Pokémon is? Well let me explain. A Pokémon is a creature that inhabits many lands, Tōhoku being one of them. They are marvelous creatures with strange powers that allow them to do a lot of different things. Many young kids, and even adults, befriend Pokémon and become Pokémon Trainers, who partake in competitive battles and contests.

I know, I know…it's a bit of a hard concept to grasp. But don't worry. I have a story of a young trainer that was just as clueless as you.

It all started years ago, in the small and peaceful town of Ante Town…

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><p><em>Chapter 1 ●○● Meeting Her<em>

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><p>It was early. Really, very early.<p>

And Fayal Ushiwaka did not like it.

Standing outside the door of his new home in this new town, the raven haired Senior rubbed his eyes of sleep, doing his best to remember to keep his book bag on his shoulder. He had never in his life, even in his previous home, gotten up this early for school.

His mother, also a raven haired, stood opposite her son in the doorway, smiling. Now he knew what it was like to get up for work every morning. "I know it's not easy being the new kid…especially since you're in your last year and all," She began softly, knowing that the move to this new region wasn't easy on her two children. "but we've got a chance for a new life now, Fay."

Running a hand over his face and through his widow's peak that made his bangs just sit gently over pristine blue eyes, the Ushiwaka smiled, knowing his mother's concern. "I know, Mom." He nodded, letting his hand fall to his side and slip into his pocket a moment later. "Dad said it was for the best, and I trust him. We'll be fine. Don't worry."

His mother smiled a soft smile as she sighed. She knew her son would adjust fairly well, yet she still had those first day jitters.

Blue eyes looked away from his mother, he turning slightly to look to the path beyond their home that led to the main road, and his new High School. "Well…I should probably get going or I might be late."

"Yeah," His mother let out a chuckle, leaning closer to her son. "we wouldn't want our little Fay-fay to be late on his first day of school, would we?" She asked in a baby voice, reaching out to pinch his cute little cheeks before he batted them away, smiling.

"Fay?"

Turning back at his nickname, the elder of the two Ushiwaka children looked to his younger sister, who made her sleep appearance beside their mother. "You should be sleeping, Fiori." He told her softly, knowing she didn't have school for another or so, but if it were him...he'd definitely get all the sleep he could get.

"I know…" She mumbled, rubbing her eyes like he had done minutes before.

Kneeling down to her level, Fayal set a hand on her head, tousling her hair. "Then go back to bed, silly. You need your sleep."

She looked up to him, a slight smile on her face from the tousling. "But I wanted to see Nii-san off…" She mumbled further, this time a little louder before leaning on her brother and falling back to sleep.

Smiling at her, the raven kissed the crown of his sister's head, gently picking her and handing her back to their mother. He waited at the door as she took her inside to the couch to sleep until it was her turn to get up for school. "Give her a hug and a tousle for me when she leaves, will you?" He asked when his mother returned.

She continued to smile, nodding. "Of course. You call me if you need me." She stated with a serious voice and face. "Mommy will come running."

Fayal let out a small laugh, a smile cracking onto his lips as he took a few steps backward, toward the path to school. "That's what I'm afraid of!"

His mother narrowed her eyes, trying her best not to smile. "That's what you say now! Just wait! You'll need your mother soon enough!" She wagged her finger, unable to hold her smile back.

Giving the largest grin he could, Fayal gave his mother a wave before turning completely and start his long walk to school. "Bye, mom!"

"Goodbye, Fay." Mother Ushiwaka said softly to herself, watching her son disappear down the path to the main road. She knew he didn't need her for a lot of things anymore. He was a big boy, starting his own life…

* * *

><p>One thing about being out this early in the morning – although he really did detest getting up this early in the morning – Fayal had to admit that having the peace and quiet of the streets to himself was pretty nice.<p>

When they first moved here a few days ago, he swore he'd go crazy with all the sounds of cars, beeps and the hubbub of a town. Granted, at night it certainly slowed down enough for him to sleep, but it was one of those things he'd just have to get used to.

Just like this walk to school. Again, it was one of those things he'd have to get used to, but did the school really have to be so far away?

He'd scoped out his route one night when the hubbub had died down and it certainly took a lot longer than he would've liked. After leaving his home, he took the path to the main road, took a right and walked down that for a while. Then, he'd cross the street and, instead of walking left, then right and then left again to get to the school, he'd found this little patch of land.

It was bordered by a really plain white picket fence, but it seemed untouched and he was sure no one cared if he walked through it. So he did.

It cut off nearly 10 minutes of his route, which just meant in future days, he could sleep in even more.

And as the Ushiwaka jumped over the picket fence, he realized something about the property was off. The trees were the same, the grass was the same…it was just…

Well, there was a giant orange…thing, if it was even alive, sitting on a few giant rocks that had littered the ground.

Now, Fayal knew that sometimes his blue eyes liked to play tricks on him, but he was pretty sure he wasn't hallucinating a giant orange thing in the middle of a green field. It's not like green and orange were similar colors. He didn't need to be an art major to know that.

He made sure to keep his distance, but still came close enough where he could see what the hell this thing was. It was obviously alive, its chest rising and descending slowly, like it were asleep.

It looked like a dog, actually. A really large dog, what with its massive paws that were probably close to the size of his own head, Fayal figured, and its massive head. This thing had to be a beast. A huge beast, with a tan head and tail, orange body and strange black stripes.

He hadn't realized it before, but Fayal had stopped and stood there in awe at this thing. "What the hell is this thing…?"

Before the Ushiwaka had a chance to begin to answer himself, the beast stirred, stretching out its large paws in a fan like manner before opening its jaws and yawning. "Arrrrrrr…." It whined softly before shaking his head and blinking his blue eyes in the sunlight.

Fayal could do nothing but gulp and stare at this thing – this huge thing with huge paws and even huger, very sharp teeth – that was staring him down with blue eyes that rivaled his own. He couldn't help but feel like he was a meal.

And as sudden as the rush of fear and mystery had hit the raven, it left him. The beast stood, shaking its head one more before turning around and sauntering off toward the forest.

Fayal blinked. He blinked again. "What the hell…"

"DUDE."

Jumping what felt like ten feet in the air, the raven tore his eyes away from where the beast was as he dropped his back and nearly screamed bloody murder. "Holy hell, who the – " Turning around to the owner of the voice, his blue eyes lit up, smile taking his lips. "Colby, you asshole!"

Colby Brandt stood behind his old friend, grinning a devious smile from ear to ear. "I got you good, man! I got you so fucking good! I thought you were gonna shit your pants!" He laughed, grabbing the Ushiwaka's bag and slapping him on the back. "What the hell are you doing out here anyway?"

Taking his bag from the shaggy haired blonde, the raven fell into step beside Colby, still trying to get his racing heart to calm down. "I was taking a short cut, you know, just to cut off some time when I saw this giant orange thing sleeping on that rock." He explained, pointing behind him to where the beast had been.

The blonde didn't even bother to look at the rocks, repositioning the bag that was slung over his shoulder. "Ah, that's probably Zero." He said, having seeing the dog before when he would take the shortcut. "He likes to sun himself on the rocks in the early morning."

Fayal couldn't believe how nonchalant his friend was. This "Zero" was a beast! He was huge!

Seeing the rather shocked look on his friend's face, Colby figured Fayal had no idea what Zero really was. "He's a Pokémon, man. Relax."

A…Pokémon.

Fayal's steps slowed to a stop, his eyes lowering to the ground in thought. A Pokémon. That thing was a Pokémon. It had to have been.

Okay sure, he'd never actually seen one himself…but why would Colby lie to him? And it just had to be true. No dog was ever that size! No dog could be that size! And those teeth. Those paws.

It just had to be.

"Dude, are you coming or not? We're gonna be late!" The Brandt yelled, seeing as his raven haired friend had apparently forgotten how to keep up.

Shaking his head and pushing most of the thoughts from his mind, Fayal ran to catch up with the blonde, knowing he should probably focus on other things right now. He had a lot going on; learning the layout of the new town, the new school, new people…

But knowing that Pokémon existed here – and the fact that he'd just seen his first Pokémon ever – was a very exciting fact.

As he caught up with the blonde who still continued to walk on, something else caught blue eyes. And it certainly wasn't as magnificent as "Zero". "Colby…what the hell is that thing?"

"What thing?" The blonde asked back, turning his head as he jumped the bordering fence. He could easily see that the raven was looking at his jacket, but he couldn't possibly be thinking anything bad about it. "What are you talking about?"

Fayal let out a small chuckle, wondering if Colby was truly serious as they both checked for cars before crossing the street. "That is the ugliest jacket on the face of this planet!" He laughed, knowing the Brandt was a little outrageous – even though that in itself was an understatement – but couldn't believe he was wearing that. "It's hideous!"

Colby took a minute to look down at his beloved jacket.

Yeah, okay…so the bright purple wasn't exactly easy on the eyes. And there weren't a lot of stains, either! There were those spots of bleach on the side there, and some paint on his sleeve…that burn mark on his other sleeve…the orange spray paint pretty much everywhere...and it definitely had holes. But it wasn't ugly. It just wasn't. It couldn't be.

"You're just not into fashion!" He replied, defending his beautiful jacket as he and Fayal arrived on school grounds. "You're just too blind to see it! Trust me, you'll be jealous soon!"

"I think you're the blind one. I've had to look at that _**thing**_ for the past four years and I'm nowhere near jealous of it." Another voice added, joining the two as they made their way through the parking lot.

Looking back to the voice, Fayal's face lit up once more, seeing yet another old friend. "Nikolai Merensky…" He began, seeing his old friend smile. "It's been a while."

Nikolai Merensky completely the trio, glasses framing his silver-nickel colored eyes, long dark brown hair tied halfway back. He graced his old friend with a smile. "It has been a while…it's good to see you, Fayal."

Fayal nodded, returning his sight to the large white building in front of them, remembering how long it had been since the three of them had been together. Before the two of them moved, they all lived in the Chūgoku region. It wasn't too far from this region, but it had to have been at least four years since they had seen each other… "It's been a good few years, Nik. It's nice to be out of that place though."

Nikolai let his eyes shift ahead of them as well, voice rather low. "I guess Chūgoku's gotten worse, then?"

"Really guys?" Colby asked, looking to both of his friends. "It's Fay's first day here and we're going to talk about how shitty that place is? Please." He rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "You two disgust me sometimes."

Fayal shot a look to Nikolai before opening his mouth. "That jacket disgusts me. My eyeballs puke every time I look at it."

"Fuck you, you're just jealous." The blonde snapped. His jacket was the best.

"Jealous? Of that raggedy old thing?" Yet another voice added as the boys made their way up the stairs. Unlike knowing Nikolai's and Colby's voice, Fayal was unsure of who the voice belonged to.

Looking to the other side of Nikolai, he found its owner, a shaggy redhead – although it looked more burgundy than red – whose hair seemed to have a mind of its own as it fell over his teal eyes.

Before anyone became confused, Nikolai introduced the two as they made their way inside the school. "Fayal, this is Malachi Solomon. We met him when we moved here a few years ago." He motioned to the redhead. "Malachi, this is Fayal Ushiwaka, a friend of ours from Chūgoku."

Malachi offered up a smile, nodding to the raven. "Other than having your eyes bleed from looking at that thing," He snickered, motioning to Colby's jacket. "how're you liking Ante Town?"

Snickering as the blonde shot all of them dirty looks, the Ushiwaka smiled. "I'm not used to the hubbub of the town…but it's nice. It's really sweet that you guys have Pokémon here, too." He added, remembering how exciting it was to learn they lived here.

"Oh really?" Malachi asked, not having a great interest in the creatures, but seeing the look on the raven's face gave him a hint as to what it meant. "What did you see?"

"He saw Zero." Colby answered, pretty sure Fayal either didn't remember his name or wasn't sure of it in the first place.

The redhead turned his head away, now completely disinterested. "Oh."

The change was apparent, enough to cause Fayal to crease his eyebrows as the three lead them to their lockers for this year. "What is a "Zero" anyway? Is it bad?"

Nikolai let out a snicker, as well as Colby and explained as he entered in his combination. ""Zero" is his name, Fayal. He's a Pokémon – an Arcanine to be more specific – owned by a local trainer. He's usually loafing around town, so don't be surprised if you see him again."

Fayal looked down, his heart beginning to race at the thought of seeing the Arcanine again. Now that he thought about it, the beast was pretty magnificent… "Who owns him?" He asked, eyes on his combination just to make sure he didn't screw it up.

Both Colby and Nikolai shot each other a look before glancing to Malachi.

As they thought, he was turning red with anger, his hand clenching his open locker door. "Her name's Kyani Willow. And she's a total bitch." Slamming the door shut, he walked away, silently fuming to himself.

Fayal watched him leave, eyebrows furrowing even more. "And what pissed him off?"

Colby decided to answer this one, setting most, if not all of his books in his locker because he was too lazy to carry them. That and he could look off of Nikolai's, since the guy really didn't need them anyway. "Don't mind him, he's just bitter." He rolled his eyes. "Kyani's the daughter of the Pokémon Professor in this town, so naturally she's got Pokémon."

"She's…an odd one, Fay." Nikolai added, waiting for the raven to finish up with his locker. "It's best you just avoid her."

Turning with his friends as they led him to their homeroom, Fayal looked to both of them. "But if she's the daughter of the professor, she's the one to go to for a Pokémon…right?" He asked, taking in the different flyers on the walls.

The Brandt shook his head, smiling slightly. Fayal had always been mesmerized by Pokémon, but seriously, was he that badly obsessed? "Dude, it's your first day here. Stop worrying about Pokémon and deal with life first."

Nikolai nodded in agreement for once. "He's right. Get acquainted with your life before you even start thinking about stuff like that. It'll be tough enough, dealing with school and having to see that ugly jacket all day, every day."

Fayal couldn't help but laugh, watching as steam nearly flew from Colby's ears.

"You guys rip on my gorgeous jacket one more time and I swear to god I'll kill you both." He threatened in a low voice as they made their way into the classroom.

"Aw, but Colby, then you'll have no one who appreciates you and tolerates that jacket." Fayal joked as he sat down in front of the Brandt – which probably wasn't a good move – and beside the Merensky.

"You're first, Ushiwaka. You are fucking number one on my list, so sleep with one eye open."

As the bell above them rang and class officially began that day, Fayal wasn't sure if his friend was being serious or not.

And that probably wasn't a good thing.

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><p>Even though he wasn't walking out with his friends, Fayal felt extremely proud. The day had gone by so smoothly, he wasn't sure he was awake. Every class he had didn't start anything at all, just going over some stupid syllabus that allowed his mind to zone out into space.<p>

And every time, he kept thinking back to the…Arcanine, was it? He just couldn't keep his mind off the thing.

"Hey, Fayal."

Snapping from his thoughts, the Ushiwaka looked back to the voice, only to see Nikolai walking out of the building after him. "Hey, man." He answered, waiting for the brunette.

Catching up with the raven, the boys continued to walk home, the day finally done. "How was your first day? Everything go well?"

Fayal looked up in thought, smiling a small smile. "Yeah, everything went pretty well. There was this blonde girl that would stop looking at me all day… and I ran into some poor chick around lunch." He stated, remembering the encounters. "She looked so scared, I felt bad…but when I went to help her, man, she was already done and gone."

"That would be Kyani." Nikolai informed, knowing who she was immediately. There was only one girl in school who seemed like she was scared of everything. And the other girl…well…that could be any one of them.

"Really?" Fayal asked incredulously. That shy girl is the one who owns that magnificent Arcanine? How the hell did that work? He imagined someone like Malachi or someone….confident owned Zero.

The Merensky nodded. "Yeah, I know, it's hard to believe." He began, looking through the parking lot before walking through it. "She's always been like that. She's the only one in school that acts that way. As I said before, it's just best if you stay away from her."

There was a part of Fayal that knew he was right. If she was a shy girl, it was best to let her alone so there wasn't added stress on her. But… "What if I want a Pokémon? Wouldn't she be the one to go to?"

Nikolai sighed. He knew Fayal was thickheaded, but to keep going on about that! "You're still thinking about that?"

"Yes, I am." The raven answered quickly. "You and Colby left at a good time. Chūgoku's gotten so much worse…my dad stayed behind to help and eventually, I want to go back and help, too."

Letting out yet another exasperated sigh, Nikolai stopped the Ushiwaka before they crossed the road. "Alright," He relented, knowing nothing he said or stated could change Fayal's mind. "there's a tournament in town this weekend. It's a charity event for trainers…it'll give you a good chance to scout around and see if there's a trainer you'd like to learn from."

"Will Kyani be there?" The Ushiwaka asked, blue eyes boring into silver.

Nikolai let his eyes slip shut. Dear god the boy was stubborn. "Yes, she will be there. But there are better trainers out there, trust me." Before Fayal could open his mouth and argue, he continued. "Just think about it."

Fayal knew that out of the two of his friends, Nikolai wasn't one to lie to him or deceive him – although the Merensky was known for using his sharp mind and wit to manipulate – and decided to at least think about it. It was the least he could do. "Alright, man. I'll think about it."

Besides, there was no harm in wondering what it would be like to have a beast like Zero, was there?

* * *

><p>Sitting in the cold, hard steel bleachers of the High School's gymnasium, Fayal couldn't believe his eyes.<p>

There were so many Pokémon! He swore that there were at least 50 different Pokémon. Maybe 100.

The rest of the week had passed like the first day; smoothly and without a hitch. He didn't run into Kyani at all, but swore a few times that he caught a glimpse of her. The other girl…well…she kept her distance, but he swore, every time he looked over to the blonde girl, she was looking at him with those green eyes. Nevertheless, the weekend – and the tournament – was upon them.

The four boys had gotten tickets earlier in the week, since they went pretty quickly. This charity tournament was one of the only activities in the town and gave them all a chance to watch the mastery and abilities of the Pokémon they didn't own.

As much as they watched the Pokémon, Fayal's blue eyes were more on the trainers. He didn't know about Pokémon, but it was pretty obvious that one needed to be a good trainer to have good Pokémon.

His friends, even Malachi, had been giving him tips and little snippets of information on the battles and the trainers, trying to convince him to go with this person, or that one. It was definitely helpful, because he really didn't know much about them anyway, but it was getting annoying.

He wanted to be able to make his own decisions with his own thoughts. "Guys, seriously," He began, not letting his blue eyes waver from the rings. "I want to watch the battles. I'll ask you when I need info or something."

"Alright, dude." Colby said, leaning back so that his back was resting on the wall as he shoved some popcorn in his mouth. "We'll lay off."

Nikolai and Malachi followed Colby's suit; leaning back so they wouldn't hurt their backs, also remaining silent. If he wanted to make his own decision, fine.

So long as it wasn't Kyani. They would give anything to know he wouldn't choose her.

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><p>Later that very day, the boys were still up in the bleachers, three of them leaning back, almost uninterested, while their raven haired friend sat forward, watching the matches intently.<p>

There were so many trainers, he wasn't sure who he should focus on first. There were trainers who put up these giant Pokémon against small ones, and there were trainers who won match after match after match.

And as much as his friends told him to stay away and disregard this Kyani girl, Fayal could not help but watch her matches. It was astounding, really, the way she battled. She seemed just like his friends – disinterested in the match – and yet, she won each time. She even used the same Pokémon for each match!

Fayal couldn't help but wonder, if Kyani was such an astounding trainer as he believed, why were his friends telling him to avoid her? They were practically begging him not to choose her. But why?

It didn't make sense.

Shaking his head to drive those thoughts from his mind, the raven knew he couldn't figure out his friend's minds. Well, Nikolai and Malachi's he couldn't understand.

He didn't want to understand Colby's mind.

Returning his focus back to Kyani's match, he checked the match sheet on his lap, making sure he knew what exactly was going on. "So it's an…Umbreon," He mumbled to himself, looking at the slick black fox-like creature. "verses a…Ni-do-ri-no." He sounded out, looking at the larger purple creature.

The rest of the sheet really didn't make much sense to him since it talked about levels, types, abilities and a few other things, but right now he didn't need to know that. He figured he'd learn that when he became a trainer… and put his focus back on the match.

It seemed to him that the person facing Kyani was aggravated at the fact that she looked like she didn't care. She wasn't even watching the match! That…Umbreon also seemed a lot better trained than the Nidorino. It was running circles around the purple beast…but that could have been because it was just quicker.

Fayal had to frown inwardly. How the hell was he supposed to pick someone to train under when he didn't even know the basics himself!

Yet, as he continued to watch the match, he noticed something. Kyani became…alert. She still wasn't watching the match, but her eyes were definitely watching something going on in another ring. Within seconds, she reached to her side chain and pulled out another Pokéball, releasing some type of bird Pokémon.

The referee also watching the match raised his hand, blowing the whistle that hung around his neck. "Trainer Kyani is disqualified!" He yelled, the match stopping within an instant.

"Aw, damn." Fayal mumbled, leaning back. He knew trainers couldn't call out a second Pokémon without swapping out the first, but why didn't she? He wanted to see the rest of her match.

She didn't seem as upset. "Yes, well, you see that Weezing over there?" She asked, pointing to a floating purple monster that had a skull and crossbones mark on its chest. "It's about to spew toxic gas everywhere unless we deal with it."

He glanced over to the Weezing, examining it as it coughed and hacked, a brown gas flowing from its mouth. Pulling up his whistle, he nodded to her, blowing the silver trinket to get everyone's attention. "Please, everyone! There is an emergency and we need all of you to exit the building safely!"

Trainers recalled their Pokémon and jumped out of their rings, while the people in the bleachers left with urgency. They weren't sure why, only some had heard Kyani's words, but still obeyed.

Fayal was still seated when his friends began to stand, also complying with the ref's words. "Aw, come on guys, wait a second." He pleaded, still wanting to see what was going on.

"Dude, are you deaf?" Colby asked incredulously. "The ref wants everyone out. Now."

"I know you're blind from looking at Colby's jacket…" Malachi began, snickering as he received a glare from Colby. "But we've got to go."

"Hey! You guys, up there!"

All four boys turned their heads to the voice, their eyes going wide when they saw the owner. Kyani had yelled to them.

"Open all the windows you can! We need to air out this place right now!" She continued, turning her attention away from them as quickly as she'd put it on them.

Fayal watched her as he and his friends opened the windows, amazed at how she commanded that bird of hers to blow the smog away. She had such a mastery over, not just the large brown bird, but over everything, it was astounding.

It was the fact that she was aware of everything around her – not just the battle like other trainers – but that she was wise enough to realize that that creature was going to do something harmful to everyone and get them out of here.

Kyani was the trainer he needed. Fayal knew it, right then and there, watching the brunette work with her Pokémon and clean the place out. She obviously knew many more things than her opponents, and definitely him, no matter what his friends said.

She was it. Kyani was the only one he wanted to teach him about Pokémon.

* * *

><p>Despite making his decision already, Fayal had returned to the tournament on Sunday to watch the rest of the matches and find out who would win the entire thing.<p>

He didn't really need further assurance that the Willow was the one who he wanted to train under, but with every battle of hers that he watched, his choice was further assured.

She was confident and relentless. She had a fire in her eyes, even if she wasn't saying anything to her Pokémon. They acted…as if they were one. And they were so well trained! He couldn't believe it.

Even though he'd made his decision, he made it seem like he hadn't chose yet. His friends had been so adamant against her, he wasn't sure how to break it to them that he'd picked her. He'd definitely tell them, eventually…but he could at least wait until they warmed up to the idea.

That, and he had to at least talk to his mom first. It wouldn't be fair to not include her.

"So…you wanted to talk to me, Fay?" His mother asked, sitting at the kitchen table, across from her son. Her voice had a ting of worry in it.

As he'd thought earlier in the day, Fayal wanted to talk to his mom. He wanted to make sure what he was going to do was okay with her. The raven really wanted her approval, and asked to talk after his younger sister had gone to bed. "Yeah..."

It fell to silence for a few moments, his mother unsure of the severity of this talk, and Fayal unsure of how to start the conversation, his blue eyes looking away from his mom.

"Uh…" He began, breaking the silence as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I know that we came to this region to get away from Chūgoku, and I'm really glad we got out of there." His eyes still diverted from his mother's. "But…I do want to go back, mom."

His mother's dark brown eyes widened in a bit of alarm and shock. He wanted to go back? But why?

He saw her look, and immediately put his hands in front of him to calm her. "I don't mean now, mom…" The raven assured. "It's just….there's this girl at school. She's the daughter of the Pokémon Professor…and for me to go help dad, I need a Pokémon." He finally looked at his mother, not sure of what to make of her reaction. "But I wanted to get your approval first."

Sitting at the table, the mother Ushiwaka looked away from her son, letting out a deep sigh. "So…" She began apprehensively, eyes drawn to the table. "You're going to get a Pokémon? …and go off training for who knows how long?"

Blue eyes closed. "I knew you wouldn't like the idea." He muttered.

"No, no…" She refused, shaking her head slightly. "I think it's great that you want to go help your father." A small smile took her lips before it fell. "But…if you do get a Pokémon…it's going to be hard work. You'll be gone quite a bit…"

He nodded, already understanding that much.

"Fiori will miss you…she's always had you by her side. And I'll miss you too." She added, her voice soft, eyes diverting away.

"Mom, I'm not leaving yet." Fayal said, looking to his raven haired mother. "There's a lot I would need to learn first…and I'd have to actually get a Pokémon, you know." He smiled, letting out a soft chuckle. "That's the most important part."

She couldn't help but chuckle, a smile breaking out on her face. "Alright…" She began, still very apprehensive to the idea. She'd seen what those creatures could do to a person first hand. It certainly wasn't hard to imagine something happening to her only son.

He could read her anxiousness and knew it wouldn't ever go away. She was his mother, after all. "Mom, when we moved here, you told me we had a chance for a new life."

She nodded. "Yes, I did."

He smirked in return. "How about one with Pokémon?"

* * *

><p>Normally, Fayal wasn't a nervous guy. He was pretty smooth when it came to talking to girls – at least, he thought so – but none of his charm had gotten him anywhere with Kyani.<p>

It wasn't that she refused to teach him, or that she completely denied him…it was that he hadn't even gotten to ask her yet!

Every time he saw her, it was either for an instant and she was gone, or she was so nervous and worked up, it made him nervous and worked up. It just didn't make any sense at all. How could this girl who could control Pokémon so well be such a nervous wreck around people?

It had been three days since the tournament, and Fayal was starting to wonder if he would ever get to ask her. It didn't seem that hard when he thought about it; he'd go up, ask her for a Pokémon and if she'd train him.

It was actually getting those words out when he saw the poor girl standing there, shaking as her turquoise eyes desperately looked around for an escape.

The sudden clatter of a plastic tray landing next to Fayal shocked him from his thoughts, making him jump. "Dude, what the hell!" He yelled, smiling as Colby sat next to him. Of course it was the blonde that startled him.

"Ah, come on Fay, you make it too easy." The Brandt replied, picking up his fork and plunging it into the mashed potatoes on his tray.

Sitting opposite the blonde and raven, Nikolai opened his lunch box, nodding in agreement. "You did seem out of it." He added, watching in disgust and awe at Colby. How the hell he managed to eat the cafeteria food without getting sick was beyond the Merensky.

Fayal looked back down to his own packed lunch, sighing. "Mmhmm." He answered.

Deep blue eyes looked over to the raven. It didn't take him long to figure it out. "You still haven't asked her yet, have you?" He asked, eyebrows creased. He wasn't really keen with the idea of Fayal asking Kyani, but once the Ushiwaka made his mind, there was no way they could convince him otherwise.

Blue eyes remained on his lunch, specifically the chocolate pudding. It looked pretty good today. "I can't." He began, eyes shifting to the table. "She's always so nervous when I go up to her, which makes me nervous and I can't ask her when I'm nervous!"

"Ask who what?" The last to join them, Malachi sat next to Nikolai and looked up to the raven, unsure of what he was talking about.

Fayal had been very hesitant to tell Malachi about his decision with Kyani, since he barely knew the guy and knew how much he despised her. But, he had asked…and it seemed like the best time to tell him. "I'm going to get a Pokémon from Kyani…and I'm going to ask her to train me to."

All movement from Malachi stopped. He even held his fork in midair. His teal eyes flashed to blue. "I am warning you, that girl is no good." He growled in a low voice, pointing his fork to the raven.

"You don't know how bad Chūgoku needs help." Fayal retorted in the same low voice, eyes just as adamant. "If I want to go back and help, I need proper training and she was the only one who seemed to really know her stuff."

It was pretty obvious that he wasn't going to crack the Ushiwaka's skull – at least mentally – and let out a growl of frustration and anger before getting up and walking to another table. At least then he wouldn't have to hear about Kyani.

Fayal watched him walk off and sit at another table. Seriously, what was the guy's problem? Why does he care who Fayal gets trained by? Returning his gaze to his two remaining friends, the anger dropped from his face, it being replaced by confusion.

The two were sharing a look of concern. "Do you want to tell him?" Colby asked, swirling his fork in the gravy that pooled around his potatoes. "Or should I?"

Fayal looked to Nikolai curiously. "Tell me what?"

The dark brunette sighed a very deep sigh, his eyes closing momentarily. "Well…you see…back in 11th grade...Kyani and Malachi dated for about three months."

Blue eyes widened at the Merensky before his whole being slowly turned to look back at the redhead. He and Kyani…_**dated**_?

Nikolai nodded, knowing the Ushiwaka was thoroughly shocked. "Yes, it is true." He assured, watching as the raven turned back to face him.

"But you see," Colby picked up, remembering those days very well. "Kyani broke it off one day out of the blue. Didn't even give the poor bastard a reason. It broke his heart."

"We think he still has feelings for her…" Nikolai added, nickel-silver eyes looking to the still fuming redhead. "He's just too angry to see it right now."

Fayal nodded slowly, letting blue eyes return to his lunch. Well, he couldn't blame the guy. If he'd been dumped out of the blue with no reason whatsoever, he'd be pretty freaking pissed off too.

"But back to the point," Colby broke the silence, looking over to the raven. "you're going to ask her to train you too?"

Once again, the Ushiwaka nodded, his voice turning soft and low. "You guys seriously don't understand how bad Chūgoku is right now. My dad desperately needs help…and Kyani was the only trainer I saw that seemed to really know what she was doing." He explained, looking back and forth between the two of them.

"She's never taken on a "student", I'll have you know." The brunette said, understanding the raven's pain. He really did. They all grew up there; they didn't want to see it go down in flames. But the fact was that Kyani was the weirdest girl and it wouldn't be easy to get her to accept him.

"I have to try." Fayal replied, determination in his voice. "It's the least I can do for my dad."

Sharing yet another glance at his determination and will, the two boys knew they could only relent to Fayal. Nothing was ever going to change the boy's mind unless he heard it straight from Kyani.

And even then he might persist.

"She teaches a "Pokémon" class after school, most weekdays." Colby told him, reaching for his chocolate milk and taking a sip before continuing. "She might be more relaxed there…since she's not around so many people. It might be easier to talk to her there."

"It usually starts a little after school ends, so stick around after class." Nikolai continued, looking to the raven who looked a little more chipper. "And it's usually held in the field out back, by the forest line."

A smile broke out onto Fayal's lips. He knew they didn't like Kyani and they weren't keen on him asking her to train him. But to know that they still supported his decision made him smile. "Thanks, guys." He said, looking to both of them. It was nice to have friends like he did…and knew, even if Kyani didn't accept him, they'd help him out one way or another.

That's what friends were for.

* * *

><p>Standing in the field the day after his talk with Colby and Nikolai, Fayal felt so out of place, it wasn't even funny.<p>

He had figured when Colby said, "Class", that there would be a bunch of kids around, but the raven did not realize that they were kids. All of them were little kids, and to add fuel to the fire, they all had Pokémon.

Every single one of them.

He was so hot in the face, he felt like turning around and going home before anyone saw him. He didn't need a Pokémon that bad. No, no, he could certainly wait to talk to Kyani someday after school. Or maybe he could go over to her house and ask her.

"'Cuse me, mister," One of the little girls around him asked, bringing Fayal out of his thoughts. "are you waiting for Master Ky?" She asked, looking up to him with big eyes.

"U-uh," The raven began, unsure of what to say. He was waiting for her…but who knows what she'd actually say to Kyani. "Y-yeah," He nodded. "I wanted to ask her about getting a Pokémon."

At his words, a few more of the children gravitated toward him, bringing their Pokémon with them. The one little boy had a small yellow and black mouse with obviously red cheeks, and one of them had a brown bird that looked a little like the one Kyani had at the tournament, although it was kind of different. Another girl had a very small purple rat with huge teeth, and there was a green caterpillar too.

But as mesmerized as he was with their Pokémon, they were mesmerized with him. "Aww, you don't have a Pokémon yet?" One asked.

"They're really cool, you know." Another little boy said, pulling his hands behind his head. "My Pikachu's the best!"

"Nut-uh," A little girl argued, pushing the boy gently. "My Rattata's better!" Feeling successful that she won, she looked back to the raven. "Do you know what Pokémon you're gonna get?"

"Yeah! Tell us what you want!" Another agreed.

Thankfully, before Fayal could answer, something in the bushes took the kid's attention from him, giving him a moment to breathe, let alone think. He never thought about any of those things! And these kids….they already knew more than he did!

"Aww, it's just Noxxy and Vexxy!" The little boy with the yellow mouse cried, obviously upset that it wasn't Kyani.

"Noxxy…and Vexxy?" Fayal asked, unsure of what they were talking about until he saw the two new creatures in the lot of children and Pokémon.

One he recognized; it was the sleek black fox like Pokémon that he saw at the tournament the previous weekend. Seeing it now in fuller detail, he realized that it wasn't just slick black. Its legs from the elbow down were pure yellow – like its counterpart – and it had hollow circles of yellow on it shoulders and hips, and even more yellow in one ring on each ear and its tail.

The other one….it looked sleek too, except this one was almost completely yellow, save for a collar of white fur and the fact that its legs were black from the elbow area down. Unlike its black counterpart, its fur was wild and spiky and seemed like it could cut someone if they touched it. It kind of reminded Fayal of lightning.

A girl somewhat older than the rest of the children heard Fayal and smiled. "Yes, Noxxy and Vexxy." She smiled, seeing the awed look on his face. "They're two of Kyani's Pokémon, Nox and Vexare."

"Nox is the black one, and Vexare is the yellow one." Another voice explained, her voice coming from the bushes where the two Pokémon had emerged.

Fayal's blue eyes blinked. It was Kyani. The brunette, who always had her shoulder length hair braided back loosely, bangs pulled the right, resting gently over her eye as the rest framed her face, her turquoise eyes always avoiding him, was now standing there, smiling and looking directly at him.

Now, Fayal wasn't stupid…but he did not believe this was the same girl he knew in school. It couldn't be!

She knelt, still smiling, and watched as her two Pokémon came to rub up against her. "Nox is an Umbreon, a Pokémon of the dark type, and Vexare is a Jolteon, a Pokémon of the electric type." She explained simply, looking back up to him.

The raven had to make sure his jaw wasn't hanging open. Who was this girl?

Chuckling softly, Kyani stood once more, still smiling. "You must be new."

Still quite shocked, Fayal closed his mouth and nodded, shaking his head to get his brain working again. "Umm, yeah… I actually came to ask you for a Pokémon. Everyone said you were the person to go to."

Turquoise eyes didn't waver, although her smile did slightly. It was surprising to her that a boy his age didn't already have one…but that could be fixed rather easily. "I am the one to go to….but do you mind waiting until I get the class started first?"

Feeling his brain and facial features working again, the raven smiled. "Not at all, go right ahead."

Before turning to her class, the brunette reached into her bag, pulling out a small packet. "While I'm doing that, go ahead and take this little test for me, okay?" She asked, handing the papers to him, along with a pencil.

He took the items hesitantly, smiling falling. If he had to take a test to get a Pokémon, he'd fail it. He didn't know anything about them! "But I don't know anything about Pokémon."

Kyani continued to smile, chuckling once more. "Don't worry; it's an easy test. Just do your best."

Before the raven could retort, or even blink, Kyani had turned away from him, still smiling and sat down with all the children. Feeling a little awkward that he was still standing – and the fact that he was taller than all of them – he sat too, finally looking over this "test".

"So how was everyone's summer? Did everyone do what I told you and spend lots of time with your Pokémon?" Kyani asked, smiling as she heard their responses, hands petting the heads of Noxxy and Vexxy.

Fayal knew he wasn't being deceived. He knew he wasn't dreaming this – this was real! This girl was the same girl that was nervous, shaking and horribly shy in school! But it didn't make any sense! It was just like how Colby could see that jacket as gorgeous – he just didn't understand.

Shaking his head once again to focus his thoughts, blue eyes tore themselves away from the Willow and looked to the paper, wondering how in the world he was ever going to pass this test. If getting a Pokémon relied on this, he was sure to fail.

…At least he thought. Looking over the questions, the Ushiwaka could not believe that he'd been shocked twice today. The questions were simple. Really, really simple. Sure, they were short answer, meaning he actually had to think up an answer instead of filling in a little bubble, but still!

And none of them pertained to Pokémon. None. Not one whatsoever had the word "Pokémon" in it. Fayal knew there had to be some underlying reason, some way that she read through and understood the meaning behind the answer given.

Feeling a bit more confident, the raven quickly began to scribble down answer after answer, taking some time in between to think about what to write down. He definitely wanted a Pokémon, and if she was looking for a hidden meaning, she was sure going to see that he at least put some thought into his answers.

"Jolt!" A very soft, sweet voice called out, making the raven jump slightly.

Looking up from his test, he found that the yellow one…the…Jolteon – if that's what Kyani called it – was sitting right beside him, deep purple eyes watching him curiously.

It was almost like it wanted something from him, but Fayal wasn't sure what that was. So, he went back to his test, hoping it would get bored with him and walk away. Honestly, it was making him kind of nervous.

By the time he finished the test – in which that Jolteon was still sitting beside him – he looked up, seeing Kyani walking over to him.

Offering a small smile, she crouched beside Vexare, turquoise eyes shifting from it to Fayal, her head in her hand. "She wants you to pet her." She said softly.

Blue eyes looked to her in shock. He hadn't even been this close to a Pokémon before in his entire life, and this one wants him to touch her?

The brunette sighed softly, still smiling. She could sense his discomfort from a mile away. "It's alright," She assured, taking the finished packet from the raven and flipping it open. "She's very good with people. She won't bite, I promise."

He was hesitant. Sure, Kyani was a good trainer, and Vexare seemed so calm – she hadn't moved from that spot for a while now – but there was still a feeling of unease. What if he got shocked? What if he touched a sore spot and she bit him? What if?

The Jolteon, upset with the fact that she hadn't been petted yet, finally stood, stretching out her legs before moving closer to the Ushiwaka slowly. When she deemed he wouldn't startle her in any way, she rubbed up against his side and his back, closing her eyes.

Kyani, still flipping through the packet, watched the raven with amusement, a smile still plain on her face. It was always fun to watch a person's first reaction to a Pokémon, because she could just see them fall in love with them immediately.

She watched further, and with more amusement when Fayal gently and slowly raised his hand, reaching it out to the yellow fox, definitely hesitating to put it on her head. When he did though, she could see shock take over his face.

He was surprised! The fur that he thought would cut through skin like butter was actually really soft. It felt a lot like a buzz cut on someone's head, where the hair was so short, when someone went against the grain, it prickled against their hand.

"Vexare, here, is a Jolteon." Kyani repeated, knowing he probably didn't remember as he continued to watch her and pet her. "She's an electric type Pokémon that can charge the negative ions in the air around her for an attack, along with many other electric type abilities." She explained, smiling. "Her appearance and fur make it obvious that she's an electric type, but you'll learn to spot different types when you get your own Pokémon."

Fayal had been petting Vexare, but stopped suddenly at her words. He had to replay them in his mind before looking up to the brunette. "I…I'm getting a Pokémon?" He asked, smile growing on his face.

She returned the smile. "Yep. You may not know a lot about Pokémon," She began, knowing what he told her. "but I can help you out if you need it…and you'll learn these things as you train and experience more." Turning her head, she looked over to the black fox. "Nox, would you mind pulling out the book?"

Happily, the Umbreon bounded off for Kyani's bag, returning not a moment later with a small book in its jaws. Letting his master take the book, he snuggled up against her, earning a smile and a laugh.

"He's a really cool Pokémon." Fayal noted, watching as the red eyed Umbreon stood in front of them, waiting for Kyani to pet him.

Kyani nodded. "He's actually Vexare's brother." She informed, watching him shake out his fur before petting him.

"Is that even possible?" The raven asked, ruffling his eyebrows. He didn't know a lot..but he was fairly sure that wasn't possible.

She smiled, shaking her head. "I'll explain another time." Turquoise eyes met with blue as she looked over to him. "This is "The Book". It has the information for every Pokémon available to starting trainers like yourself. Take it home with you and look it over carefully. Pick just one, because I don't think you can handle more than that."

He chuckled, taking the book she offered. "I know I can't handle more than that."

She giggled as well, watching as he thumbed through it. "Decide by Friday, and we'll head out that weekend to catch it, alright?" She asked, not sure if he was paying attention. He seemed to have a short attention span, but that may have been because he'd never been around Pokémon before.

"The weekend?" Fayal questioned, still holding the book even as Vexare rubbed against his hands for attention, blue eyes shifting to meet turquoise. "Why can't we go now?"

Kyani smiled, letting out a soft giggle, shaking her head. "Because you have to be patient," She answered, knowing that he was pretty excited. After all, a lot had happened to him in such a short amount of time. "and you need to be sure that the one you pick is definitely the one you want. That and it'll be easier on Friday, since we don't have to worry about time."

Fayal looked back down at the book, still amazed at the fact that Kyani now had a completely different personality and slowly came to realize she was right. He did need to slow down a bit and let his mind take everything in. After all, he'd just touched his first Pokémon and found out he was going to get one.

Smiling, he closed the book and set it back into his bag to keep it safe and stood, finding that Kyani stood as well. "Thank you," He nodded, smiling softly at the brunette who returned the smile. "for being so patient and helping me out."

"You're welcome," She answered, laughing slightly as Nox sat next to her, nodding his head at Fayal, as if he were also saying you're welcome. "and it's no big deal. It's my job to help all trainers out, really."

It fell to a very short silence between the two, Fayal watching how she acted with Nox and Vexare, and god, that smile, wondering how in the world she was the same Kyani Willow he knew at school. Sure, everyone acted differently when they were in a place they were more comfortable with, but this was such an extreme change…

He wondered how he should ask her. It was natural to have that curiosity, wasn't it? To wonder how in the world it happened?

But before Fayal could think of a way to ask, let alone get his mouth open, one of the young girls he had been talking to earlier ran up to the both of them – well, more Kyani than him, but they were standing across from each other – completely red in the face and out of breath.

"Master Ky," She barely breathed out, setting her hands on her knees. "One of the…"

Kyani went right to her side in alarm, kneeling to see her face and setting a hand on her back to help her calm down. "It's alright, it's okay. What's wrong?"

Closing her eyes, the girl pointed behind her, to where she had just come from. "The Rhydon…one of the Rhydon…rampaging."

The brunette immediately stood, Vexare and Nox coming to stand right beside her, eyes narrowing, face turning grave. "Stay here," She commanded to the girl before turning to look at Fayal. "Umm…"

"It's Fayal. Fayal Ushiwaka." He told her, realizing he'd never given his name.

She smiled slightly before it fell back to a grave and serious look. "Fayal, I want you to go straight home. Straight home, you hear me?" She stressed, voice urgent.

He wasn't sure what was going on, but nodded slowly. "Y-yeah…"

Turning away from him, to the area where the girl had pointed, she looked to the black fox following her footsteps. "Nox, I want you to go with him, just in case." Still walking forward, she turned her head to the raven. "He'll walk you home."

Once again, before Fayal could get his mouth open to protest – after all, he was 17 years old, he could certainly walk himself home – Zero appeared from literally out of nowhere and slowed his pace, allowing Kyani to speed up her own pace and jump onto his back, Vexare following the Arcanine's footsteps as they ran off into the bushes.

Fayal stood there in awe. He thought those types of moves were only done in the movies!

Taking a deep breath and shaking his head, he slowly turned around, heading for home as the Umbreon followed in step beside him.

He had no clue as to what had happened, but it was awesome.

And he knew he had to get Kyani to train him. No ifs, ands or buts.


	2. The Truth

●○●_**Pokémon: Kyanite Version ●○●**_

* * *

><p>Pokémon is owned by Nintendo and Satoshi Tajiri. I own the plot and characters.<p>

The most important note you will read for this story: Please, I cannot stress enough, _**PLEASE**_ respect the fact that I have spent an entire year working on this story. There are blood, sweat, and tears in the characters and their development along with the plotline.

PLEASE THINK BEFORE YOU REVIEW.

I know that things will be confusing, especially with characters you cannot see, so if there is confusion, please PM me. I will do my best to clear up any confusion and answer questions. Other than that, please enjoy! :)

_Name Pronunciation:_ This section will always be included should a new character appear in a chapter and will be done in order of appearance.

Jade Burma: Jade Bur-mah

* * *

><p><em>Chapter 2 ●○● The Truth<em>

* * *

><p>"Fay-fay, what cha looking at?" The younger sibling of the Ushiwaka asked as she crawled onto the couch next to her brother. He had been sitting in that spot for so long, she wasn't sure if there was something wrong with him or not.<p>

Fayal sighed, allowing his tired eyes to look away from the book he'd be staring at for hours, to his younger sister. "It's a book," He answered, shifting it from the center of his lap so that she could see it better.

She huffed, rolling her eyes. "Well, duh." That was obvious. "What's it about? Who gave it to you? Why are you looking at it?" She asked, almost wrenching the book from his lap.

Fayal shook his head, a small smile appearing on his face. "It's about Pokémon, Fiori. I'm gonna get one soon to go and help dad, but I've got to pick one first." He explained, watching as her face lit up.

Brown eyes looked up to her brother pleadingly, smile on her face. "Cool! Can I look too?"

"Yes…but I get final say." The raven knew that if he didn't say it, she'd be telling him which one to get without caring what he thought. She'd be pretty upset if he came home without it, too.

But he certainly didn't mind getting her input. Sure, he didn't really care if this one was cuter than that one, or that this one was the cutest of them all, but seeing her smile was nice.

Knowing that he was spending time with his little sister and putting a smile on her face was worth listening to the "cute rating" of every Pokémon in the book.

"This one." She said after flipping a few pages. "It's the cutest one in here and I want you to get it." She commanded, pointing to a purple butterfly like Pokémon called Butterfree.

As much as he loved Fiori, there was no way in hell he'd get a butterfly for his first Pokémon. "I don't think so, Fiori." He answered her flatly. He wanted something strong, something intimidating. Something, that when he looked at it, he felt shivers go down his spine.

He wanted something that would strike fear in the hearts of those whom he faced.

Huffing in annoyance at her picky older brother, Fiori turned the page, examining them all quickly. "Ah, all ugly ones." She muttered, reaching her hand up to the corner to turn to the next page.

But her elder brother stopped her. "Wait, Fiori." His blue eyes were focused on one of the four Pokémon on the page, mind wondering exactly how to say its name. "Hound…Houndour." He mumbled, looking at the small black puppy that had a gray skull covering that looked like…well, a skull.

It was dark. It looked nasty. Even in information posted said that it was very difficult to handle and catch.

"Eww, Nii-san, that one looks ugly." Fiori said, frowning as she looked up to her elder brother. "It looks mean!"

Fayal raised his hand, setting it on her head and smiling at her. "That's the point, little one." His smile grew as she frowned even more. "I want something that's going to scare the filling out of you!" He yelled, reaching over and tickling his little sister.

She laughed, trying to squirm away from him, letting the book slide from her lap onto the floor as she kicked and thrashed. "No, no!" She cried happily, reaching for a pillow behind her and whapping him in the face with it. "Welllll…as long as I can play with it, I'll agree."

Pillow in his face, arms stretched out to try to tickle his sister, Fayal sighed into the pillow, smiling. "Mrrff. Mrrff mrrf mrrff mrf."

Fiori rolled her eyes, still smiling. What an idiot. "What was that?" She asked, pulling the pillow away to see his stupid smiling face.

"Yes," He repeated with a grin, knowing he was annoying her. "You can play with it."

A smile took the little girl's lips. "Good." She said triumphantly, returning the pillow to her brother's face.

* * *

><p>Having decided that he wanted a Houndour, Fayal kept his eyes peeled at school. He knew Kyani was definitely weird and avoided people here, but she would have to around him at one time or another to learn his decision. Unless…there were two different Kyani's and one knew what he was talking about.<p>

Maybe…just maybe they were twins! And the one he saw yesterday was the confident twin who owned Zero, and this one was just the shy twin.

Before Fayal's mind could even begin to think further, he turned the corner and promptly ran into something, falling back onto his butt. Shaking his head and blinking, Fayal wondered first, who he ran into, and second, how in the world he could let his mind wander so much.

"Sorry about that," He began, not realizing who he'd run into yet. "I wasn't paying at…ten…tion." Blue eyes blinked, trying to make sure he was seeing who he saw.

Shaking enough for it to be noticed, Kyani sat across from the raven, quickly getting up and gathering the books and papers that had fallen from her hands when she ran into the Ushiwaka. "I-it's alright." She mumbled, frantically scrambling for her papers, blue-green eyes looking back and forth.

Getting up as well, Fayal watched her actions, also picking up some books he'd lost. He wasn't even sure of what to say to her. It was just…astounding how much of a personality change Kyani went through.

"S-sorry for bumping into you." The brunette mumbled, having gathered all of her papers, standing and ready to bolt out of there.

Fayal stood as quickly as she did, reaching into his bag and fishing out "The Book" to hand back to her. "Wait," He called before she could disappear. "I decided." He smiled softly, handing her the book.

The brunette seemed to perk up and relax slightly. "Oh, did you?" She asked, the tremors only slightly leaving her voice.

He nodded, surprised to see what just a few words – and the mention of something Pokémon related – did to her personality. "I want a Houndour."

Her eyebrows rose a little, eyes not looking away from his. "They're difficult to catch and handle, you know." She warned.

Again, Fayal nodded, smiling just a bit more. "I know," He remembered, reading the line in the book. "I like the thought of a challenge."

She chuckled softly, eyes glancing around them as her nervousness seemed to return. "Alright… Houndour only come out at night, so I'll stop over sometime around 7, that way you can eat."

Blue eyes couldn't help but watch the brunette. It was just so strange how she acted. "I'll be ready."

"Oh no…" Another, much silkier voice called out from behind Fayal. "No, no, this just won't do…"

Before he could turn and look to see who the girl was, she knocked all of the papers Kyani had just gathered out of her hands, making the brunette nearly jump down to get them. "What was – "

"You must be new," The same silky voice began, smiling a wickedly seductive smile at the raven, jade green eyes looking into blue. "because everyone knows not to help her."

It was her! The blonde who he'd always catch looking at him. He knew it was her because of that hair! She had the most saturated blonde hair he'd ever seen… it was hard not to see it, which he was sure was the point.

Her bangs went the opposite way of Kyani's, to the right instead of the left, and half of her hair she had pulled up into this flat ponytail – which Fayal didn't see the point of – because the rest of her yellow blonde shoulder length hair was down, resting on said shoulders.

Those eyes were pretty hard not to miss either, since they were such a strange color green, almost like a Jade kind of color, Fayal thought. They matched the green color on her skirt, which he also knew wasn't a mishap.

Everything about the girl in front of him read, "Fashion obsessed", "Appearance obsessed", and most of all, the kind of girl Fayal didn't really care for.

The pretty preppy ones like her were too prissy and princess-y.

"Yes," He answered the blonde, still not sure of what her intentions were. "I am new."

If it were at all possible, her smile grew, eyes never wavering from his. "Oh," She cooed, jade green eyes flickering down to the rushing brunette, her smile turning wicked. "Then you wouldn't know."

His eyebrows ruffed, wondering why she was looking at Kyani. What did she have to do with any of this? What did he? "Wouldn't know what?"

The still unnamed blonde crouched gently, her white tie hanging loosely from her partially unbuttoned collard blouse. "That we don't help little miss Kyani, here." She let her gaze lift to the raven momentarily before returning to Kyani. "Don't we, Ky?" She said, stressing every word.

Kyani did not look up, her hands barely holding her papers from shaking so bad. "N-n-no." She answered meekly.

Standing there, watching the two of them, the Ushiwaka could not believe his eyes. Kyani was being….bullied? This really was the same Kyani who owned Zero, right?

The blonde continued to smile, extending her hand to the brunette's papers, setting her fingers and perfectly manicured nails on them. "Now, why don't you run along, little Ky?" She retained that sweet look on her face – that fake sweet look that said she really detested everything on the inside. "Run," She stressed. "Ky."

Breathing heavily, Kyani wasted no time in getting as far away as she possibly could, not even bothering to stand completely before turning and nearly running away from the blonde.

She chuckled, watching the Willow run away like a mouse as she stood, returning her gaze to the raven she'd been watching for the past few days. "Oh, it's so nice to get rid of her." She said almost arrogantly, as if it were her job.

The raven, still standing there, nearly had his jaw hanging open. One, because he was totally sure Kyani had to have a twin, and two, because this girl…this blonde, was a total bitch! She was so arrogant, rude and downright cruel! "I might be new," He began, trying to figure out what the hell was going on. "but I don't think it's right you treat her like that."

A fake pout took the blonde's lips. "Aw, you're so sweet." She smiled, raising her hand and tracing his jaw line. "But you don't understand," She said, wagging her finger. "I'm Jade. Jade Burma."

Well, he saw where her name came from.

"And I run this school. What I say, goes." Jade green eyes bore into blue, telling him that she had no doubt in what she was saying. "And that girl is no good, especially for a cutie like you."

Fayal's eyebrows furrowed. Was this girl serious? She was actually hitting on him, right? Not that she wasn't gorgeous – she was, no doubt – but with a personality like a spoiled princess bitch? "I think I can decide who's good for me and who isn't." He answered, taking a step to the side to get around the blonde.

Jade stepped in turn with him, blocking his route of escape. "Yes, I'm sure you can to," She still spoke with the silky voice, smile never wavering yet. "but if you want to be popular like me, you really should stay away from her."

"Maybe I don't want to be popular like you." He answered her flatly.

Chuckling, Jade's smile widened. "Aw, but of course you do. Cause then you can date me." She answered audaciously, yet coyly.

Fayal resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "No, I'd rather not, thanks. I wanted to talk to Kyani, but someone made her leave."

"Well, if she wanted to talk to you, she'd still be here, now wouldn't she?" The blonde retorted, getting somewhat angry. Why couldn't this little cutie just do what she said? Why did he have to be so damn reluctant and mean?

The raven couldn't believe his ears. This Jade girl was serious, wasn't she? "If you hadn't shown up, I'm sure she would be."

Crossing her arms in frustration, the blonde let out a sigh. She couldn't make him mad, because that would just make things more difficult for the two of them – well, her more so then him because she'd just have to work harder – but let her eyes finally shy away before going back to the raven. "Look," She began, voice softer than before. "I'm free tonight, so here's my number." Taking out a small slip of paper with her number already on it, she set it on the raven's books. "Give me a call, okay?" With a wink and a small smile, Jade walked away, her heels clacking down the hall.

The Ushiwaka had to try so hard to hold in his laughter. He knew Colby was insane but this girl – Jade, right? – was…she made Colby seem somewhat normal! And that was saying something, because the guy was a fucking nut.

But Jade wouldn't be getting a phone call from him tonight – or ever, for that matter – because Fayal already had plans that he was actually looking forward to.

Getting a Pokémon was so much more exciting than talking to a girl any day.

* * *

><p>All throughout dinner, Fayal couldn't keep his mind focused. His blue eyes kept looking to the clock on the microwave, counting down the hour and then the minutes of when Kyani would get there.<p>

He figured even with her running away from that horrifying blonde Jade girl before they could completely confirm the time, Kyani would at least show up somewhere around then…which just meant that every minute past was a minute closer to getting his Houndour.

His mother and sister watched the raven as he barely ate any of his dinner, and couldn't help but laugh out loud when he jumped at the sound of their doorbell ringing. And yet, the Ushiwaka didn't get up immediately to answer the door.

"I'll get it!" Fiori cried happily, seeing as how her brother was out in La-la Land. Slipping out of her chair, she walked through the doorway that led into the living room and almost made it passed the couch before her brother cut her off.

"Go back to the table, Fiori." Fayal told his little sister before opening the door. He knew for a fact that Kyani could be normal, and she seemed more normal around people younger than her, but he wasn't taking the chance of the two of them meeting just yet.

"Aww, but Fay-Fay – "

He smiled, looking down to his sister. "Don't make me carry you."

The younger sister crossed her arms, pouting. "You're mean, Nii-san." But she complied, turning around and heading back into the kitchen to finish her dinner.

Sighing deeply before opening the door, the raven did his best to calm his already excited nerves, finally opening the door a second later.

"Good evening." The Willow began with that same confident voice she had when she was teaching her class, same soft smile on her face. "You're ready, I presume?"

Taking a deep breath yet again, Fayal nodded, happy to see that she was in "normal" mode. At least then his mom wouldn't worry. "Yeah, I'm ready." He replied, getting ready to grab a jacket, hoping his mother wouldn't –

"I have to admit, young lady, I'm not so sure about this."

Intervene. Of course, she would.

And yet, Kyani's smile never wavered. She actually chuckled. "It's alright, Mrs. Ushiwaka." She extended her hand for a handshake. "My name is Kyani Willow; I'm the daughter of the Pokémon professor in town and I've done this more times than I can count. I've been around Pokémon my entire life. I can assure you that your son is in good hands."

Blue eyes stared. That was the most Kyani had ever spoken in one setting. And there was not one stutter. Not one tremor at all.

Yet, Fayal's mother was still not convinced. The brunette's speech sounded way too rehearsed. "You're absolutely sure he'll be safe?"

Kyani nodded, still smiling. "Yes."

"How long will you be?"

She tilted her head slightly. "It depends on how long it takes."

"And what happens if he gets hurt?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

Kyani still smiled. "I take full responsibility."

Now Mrs. Ushiwaka was impressed. "Those were very good answers."

The brunette chuckled, her smile actually growing. "As I've said, I've done this more than once. No need to worry."

"Okay, mom," Fayal began, a bit embarrassed and annoyed. Okay yeah, she was only concerned for him – but she didn't need to go through all that! "if you're done quizzing Kyani – "

"Oh, hush." His mother cut him off, turning around to head back into the home. "I can worry about you all I want, Fay-fay."

The Willow still standing at the door couldn't help but chuckle at the nickname, trying to hide her smile and fit of giggles when the raven looked over.

Feeling his cheeks burning with a blush, he hastily grabbed his jacket, muttered a goodbye and left the home, Kyani leading the way.

* * *

><p>It was quiet nearly the entire way to the Willow's house, Fayal still following a few steps behind the brunette.<p>

It wasn't that he didn't want to talk to Kyani – really, his curiosity about Kyani's personality grew every time he saw her – it was just that he didn't know what to talk about. He didn't want to be blunt and simply ask about her personality, after all, it certainly could be something that she didn't want to talk about.

Actually, there were a lot of things he was unsure about the girl walking in front of him. He didn't know about her family, or if she even had a family – which he thought was unlikely. He didn't know if she had any siblings or really, anything about her other than the fact that she had Pokémon and she had one hell of a personality.

And yet, the more he thought about it, she probably knew as much about him as he knew about her. So it wasn't like he was the only one going in blind here…she was too.

For some odd reason, that thought seemed to calm the nerves of the Ushiwaka. He knew that she knew what she was doing, but knowing she knew as little about him as he did her was somehow relaxing.

"I know it's a little far, but we're almost there." Kyani began softly, turning back slightly to see the raven. She figured the walk wouldn't be too long, but he was probably a little bored.

Drawing out of his thoughts, blue eyes blinked, taking a moment to register what she'd said. "It's alright." He mumbled, looking around. He'd completely forgotten to pay attention to where they were going so he could find his way back home, whenever that was.

Well, looking around now, he definitely realized that they weren't in the town anymore. Houses dotted the land, unlike the town where houses were pretty close to each other, while there were many more trees and open land. It was almost like the town was surrounded by forest and rolling hills of grass.

It was actually kind of relaxing, knowing that there weren't many cars traveling down these cracked pavement roads, and that the hubbub of town was canceled out by the shelter of the trees.

Knowing that Kyani lived somewhere down here, Fayal had to admit he was kind of jealous. "Your house must be out in the boonies."

The Willow turned, slowing her pace to walk beside the raven, chuckling. "Yeah, it kinda is," She nodded. "but that's only because of the fact that we're the Professor's family."

"Really?" The raven asked, furrowing his eyebrows slightly.

She nodded once more, returning turquoise eyes to the greenery. "Yep. See, we "own" the land surrounding the town, to protect and take research of the Pokémon that live around here." She explained, as if it were something simple. "But since my dad's so busy, it's my job…and it's easier when we live closer to the Pokémon, you know?"

Fayal didn't know, but he nodded anyway. "Makes sense." It did, but he was still jealous. Spending all this time with Pokémon...

He was about to ask what it was like – living and being around Pokémon all the time – when the Willow Manor finally came into view, the quaint little house sitting upon a soft sloping hill.

It was kind of surprising to Fayal. With all the prestige that Kyani seemed to carry – even when she was out of "normal" mode – plus the fact that her father was a Professor, he assumed that she'd have this big and beautiful home.

But she didn't. As they neared it, he noted it didn't have a garage, it seemed like a two story home, and that it was pretty freaking ordinary. Seriously, it was a normal, almost cookie-cutter, home.

"We'll actually be heading around to the back," The brunette began in the silence, leading the raven up the hill, but to the back of the house. "so just follow me."

He nodded silently, putting his hands into his pockets and letting out a sigh. This place was just so damn relaxing, plus the fact that Kyani didn't seem nervous in the least bit.

"There's a small pack of Houndour that usually patrol the woods right around the house here," She continued as they rounded the house, looking back to the raven and smiling when he saw the backyard. "so it shouldn't be too hard to run into one."

Okay, now he was impressed. The backyard was huge! Granted, he should have known that when she told him they "owned" the lands around the town, but still. It was gorgeous around here. The soft slope of the hill Kyani's house was on leveled out as it went further from her home, a large barn placed a few hundred yards from the back porch, as well as a few paddocks, although nothing was in them. From there, it was trees and green grass far as he could see.

"Your yard is amazing." He stated absentmindedly, simply standing there and looking at it. He was so jealous! Why couldn't they have a yard like this?

She chuckled, smiling at the Ushiwaka. "Well, thank you." Her back facing the yard, she turned around, allowing the raven to follow her once more. "And before we head out, there's someone I want you to meet."

Creasing his eyebrows and following the brunette, Fayal couldn't help but wonder if she was talking about Zero. He certainly hoped so.

Increasing her pace as her smile widened, the brunette's eyes were locked on her baby. "Zero!" She called, smile growing even more as he picked up his head, blinked his eyes and stretched out.

Fayal stopped a few feet away from the orange dog – after all, he was huge – watching in amusement and amazement as Kyani walked right up to him.

The Arcanine stretched out his paws the same way he did the first day Fayal saw him, also yawning as he lazily got up and walked over to the brunette, lowering his head so that his crown rubbed against her chest, as if saying hello.

Closing her eyes and smiling, Kyani reached around her dog's large head, her hands scratching just behind his ears. She could feel him growl, and it wasn't that kind of menacing growl. She knew his sounds and growls. That was just his way of purring. "I know, baby, I missed you too."

The Ushiwaka couldn't help but smile, seeing how loving the two of them acted, but also couldn't help but tilt his head. It was just…astounding. This huge dog that could probably rip her in half or destroy her was purring like a tamed kitten. And towards Kyani!

Well, not that she couldn't tame him, but the fact that she was so….shy and reclusive at school. It was just so hard to picture this, even if it were unraveling right before his blue eyes.

Still scratching his ears, the brunette sighed quite deeply before turning to Fayal, smile still very apparent on her face. "Fayal, I'd like you to meet my best friend and partner, Liger Zero." She laughed as the Arcanine pushed his head underneath Kyani's right arm, blue eyes looking to the newcomer. "Zero," She looked down to him. "this is Fayal. He'll be coming with us today."

The raven watched as the Arcanine looked him over, giving a pretty nervous smile. Honestly, what was he supposed to say? Nice to meet you?

Zero slipped out from underneath his master's arm, slinking over to the raven, nose very active as he sniffed, blue eyes examining him before landing around his pockets. He had absolutely no fear of Fayal, walking even closer to him and nudging his arm.

The Ushiwaka stood stark still, letting the Arcanine nudge his arm and push him around. After all, what was he supposed to do? Knock him away? Yeah, right, if he wanted to die.

"Zero!" Kyani yelled, walking over to him and pushing him away, able to see the fear in Fayal's eyes. "You know better than that, silly goose." She smiled, continuing to push him away as her hands wrapped around his neck, scratching the dog. She continued to scratch as she turned to look at the raven. "Sorry," She knew he'd scared the Ushiwaka. "he could smell something in your pocket."

Fayal ruffled his eyebrows at first, not realizing the Arcanine could smell that well, before relaxing slightly. So all he wanted was some chocolate, huh? "It's alright," He smiled, pulling the Hershey bar from his pocket. "I don't mind sharing, if he wants some."

The tan ears of the Arcanine snapped up considerably, blue eyes looking over to the raven, as if asking if he could really have a piece.

He broke off a substantial piece of the bar, not wanting to get on the dog's bad side or have it be so small, he couldn't even hand it to him, and held it out for Zero, still a bit hesitant. He seemed pretty tame, and Kyani had a very good handle on him, but there was still that nervousness. Those teeth were huge and if something he did made Zero mad…

The Arcanine could sense his nervousness and kept his blue eyes square with Fayal's blue eyes, taking the piece rather gently – but eating it rather ravenously. After devouring it, he growled happily, going back to his master and turning away from her, looking to the far tree line.

Kyani took this as a sign that he was ready, smiling and shaking her head. "Well, now that he's happy…" She mumbled, looking over to the raven. "Are you ready?"

There was a mixture of nervousness, happiness, determination and excitement in Fayal's mind, a smile finally winning out. "Yeah," He nodded, feeling surer of himself now. "I'm ready."

Smiling, the brunette had her Arcanine crouch slightly so that she could get onto his back easier and extended her hand for Fayal. "Then let's go."

Returning her smile, he grabbed her hand and got onto the back of the Arcanine he once feared, taking a deep sigh to remind himself this was real.

It was so much like a dream, he couldn't believe it. But it was really real. This was actually happening right before his very eyes.

* * *

><p>It was some time after sunset, when the sky still had some trace of orange within its navy blue depths when the trio decided to stop and settle in.<p>

Fayal sat opposite of Kyani and Zero, watching as she gathered a few branches from the surrounding woods and set them in the center. Adding some rocks to the perimeter of the branches, she turned back to Zero, walking over to him and sitting down, leaning against him.

The Arcanine stretched out his body first, letting his front legs lay out, almost majestically. Opening his jaw and maneuvering it first, he looked toward the branches his master had set for them and in a controlled burst, spewed fire from his jaws.

Fayal's jaw opened, amazed. Sure, Zero was amazing just by his looks, but to know that he could do something like that – something as controlled as that – without any command from Kyani, was awesome.

It just furthered Fayal's want to make Kyani his teacher. He just had to convince her now.

Now that she was settled against her baby and relaxed, Kyani sighed, looking over to the raven. "It could be a few hours before the Houndour come out, since they only come out at night…so we're going to just wait for them here. It'll be easier on us, and especially you."

He nodded, not sure of what to say in reply, but thinking about how considerate she had been. Yeah, he was a pretty fit kid, but if he really had to travel around all night and then battle….that might just push him over the edge.

Closing her eyes, she leaned back even more, slipping her bag off her shoulder and allowing it to fall beside her. "Once we hear the Houndour, we'll either go search for them or lead them to us, of which I haven't exactly decided yet. Oh and," Opening her eyes, she reached for her bag, opening it and searching for something. "I'm going to give you 5 of these."

Fayal's blue eyes watched in curiosity, seeing her hold five very tiny red and white balls. His eyes widened and a confused smile took his face when she pressed the silver button in the center of one of them, it expanding considerably.

"These are Pokéballs," She told him, rolling them over to him since there was a fire between them. "and they're used to catch wild Pokémon. You simply expand it by pressing the button in the center and throw it at a wild Pokémon."

"And it'll catch one?" He asked, looking up to her as he fiddled with the round device.

She scrunched her face, thinking about how to answer. "It depends. They work better when the Pokémon is injured, or put under a condition like Sleep or Paralyze. But you shouldn't have too much trouble." She assured, smiling. "I'll loan you Nox for the night, too, since you'll need a Pokémon to battle with."

His head snapped up, attention drawn away. "Battle?"

The brunette smiled, keeping her voice level and calm. She knew this was a lot of information, especially since he'd only been introduced to the Pokémon world a few days ago. "Yes, battle. You'll have to fight with the Houndour before throwing the Pokéball…and since you don't have one, I'll loan you Nox."

Fayal ruffled his eyebrows, trying to think back. "Nox is the…black one, right?"

Kyani chuckled, nodding. "Yes, Nox is the black one. The battle between you and a Houndour will begin as soon as your eyes meet his; it's the rule for all battles. From there, you call out Nox and weaken the Houndour until you can catch him."

"Okay…lock eyes, call out Nox and…catch Houndour." Fayal repeated, hoping to God he remembered it when the battle actually took place.

Kyani could see this, and chuckled even more. "Don't worry," She smiled. "I'll be right there to remind you."

Closing his eyes, the raven sighed in relief. "Oh, good. I didn't think I'd remember all that."

"I wasn't expecting you to." She laughed, shaking her head, still smiling. "Do you have any questions? Maybe something I need to explain?" Usually, she didn't have anyone asking questions, but she still asked anyway.

Now Fayal had to sigh. He did have questions. He had a lot of questions. He wanted to know why Kyani was so different at school. He honestly wanted to know how Kyani had managed to train Zero so well. But was this really the time to ask?

He figured now was a better time than ever, simply because she was in a good mood – or at least, she seemed to be in a good mood – and there was no one else around to make them nervous. That and if the answer was touchy, there was no one else to hear it.

Finally, he nodded, blue eyes hesitantly looked up to turquoise. "Yeah, actually…I've got a few questions."

She smiled, almost expecting it. He looked like he was in pretty deep thought a few seconds ago. "Sure, shoot."

The raven took a deep breath, allowing his eyes to close momentarily before looking back to her. "Okay, first question…would you teach me about Pokémon?"

Kyani smiled even more, chuckling softly. "Of course I would. I can't just give you a Pokémon and expect you to learn it all on your own." She answered, watching as his face lit up, smile appearing. "I mean, you need to know the basics like types and how to battle and things like that in case you ever go traveling."

The Ushiwaka's smile fell as he heard her following words. "No," He began, shaking his head. "That's not what I meant…"

The brunette looked down first, ruffling her eyebrows before returning her sight to the raven. "…Then what did you mean?" She asked, brushing some loose hair from her braid behind her ear.

The raven took a few minutes to answer, honestly thinking. "I saw you battle at the tournament…I want to know everything that you know about Pokémon and battling…I need to know."

Kyani did not answer him, it falling to silence. She looked away from him, thinking very deeply. So he wanted a _**true**_ teacher – someone to show him the ropes and prepare him for something…and granted, she knew she was a great trainer…but she wasn't sure about this. "Give me one reason." She said, not looking at him at first. "One good, solid reason that makes up for spending all of my free time to teach you, when you may not even learn anything at all."

Now it was Fayal's turn to look away, his face falling a little bit. "I…I can't explain everything right now, because I don't know a lot of what's going on…" He sighed. "But…back home, my country's falling apart…and my dad stayed behind to help put it back together. He's fighting right now and I want to help him." His eyes remained on the ground, remembering those moments when his father told him he was going to stay behind in that hellhole of a country. "I want to go back and help him. But I can't do that until I'm stronger and smarter."

Kyani's turquoise eyes watched him with an unreadable gaze. It was obvious he wasn't lying, that was true – even if he wasn't looking at her – but there was something more in his words and actions that made her feel sympathetic. She knew what it was like, not leaving behind loved ones, but wanting to help people close to you.

She sighed heavily, allowing her eyes to close. "I'm not the kind of person to train someone else, I'll have you know." She began, having an underlying reason for not going around people. "I don't mind helping the children, but I can handle children…so, we'll see." She answered, looking over to him. She didn't want to drag his hopes up, but didn't want to crush them either. "We'll see how this goes before deciding further…and you must promise to tell me the entire story before I finish training you, do you understand?"

It wasn't the answer he was hoping for, but it wasn't a no. He could live with that. "Alright." He nodded in agreement, letting a small smile return to his lips.

"Alright…" Kyani sighed, looking away before looking back to him and flipping some hair out of her eyes. "What's your second question?"

Blue eyes blinked. He'd almost completely forgotten about the second question, and now, remembering it, felt his face turn red. Sure, it was just a simple question, but he knew next to nothing about Kyani and yet, he was asking something that felt so personal.

But there _**had**_ to be a reason behind it. There had to be a reason for her double persona…she was so normal here, where he could really imagine her as a friend of his, and yet, at school…she was so…afraid.

Gathering up the most of his courage, still refraining from looking at her, Fayal took a deep breath. "Why are you so different?"

Kyani blinked, not sure of what he was talking about, she ruffling her eyebrows. "What do you mean…?"

Fayal gulped. "Right now, you're totally normal. At least, you're acting like…like…I'd expect a girl to act." He felt weird. Was he using the right words? He didn't want to make it seem like she was odd – even though she was – because insulting his possible teacher was something he did not want to do. "But like, at school…you're completely different. Do you have a twin or something? Or am I just crazy?" He asked, looking to her.

His head having been resting on his stretched out paws, Zero picked up his head, blue eyes looking up his master, ears perked forward toward her. "Arca…" He growled in concern, nudging her arm with his nose.

Kyani looked down to her Arcanine, raising the arm he nudged over his head to his neck, petting the far side of his neck. "No, it's alright," She sighed heavily, giving him a small smile. "It's fine. _**If**_ I'm going to train him, he should know…"

Fayal watched their interaction with a bit of confusion. Did she really understand what he said…or was she just reading his actions?

Turquoise eyes looked over to the raven, not upset in the least. Actually, she wore a soft smile on her lips. "Fayal, there is a reason for the "double personality" you've picked up on. It's called Panic Disorder."

Blue eyes blinked, his face wrinkled in confusion. "Panic…disorder?" He repeated, watching her nod in return.

"Yeah…my dad has it too…it's kind of genetic." She sighed softly. "You see, I was homeschooled until 9th grade, where I entered the high school we both go to. I was already really nervous and pretty much afraid of everyone there…I'd never really been around people before." She shrugged her shoulders, looking away. "I mean, Jade was as cruel as she is now,"

Fayal frowned, remembering the obnoxious blonde and how she treated the brunette sitting across him from.

"and that really messed with me…but my Panic Disorder started that day, when the Principal called me into the office and told me I couldn't have Zero with me." She spoke so softly, eyes looking into the fire in remembrance. "I ended up having a panic attack right in front of everyone…and because of it, I've been labeled, as I'm sure you've heard."

There was a look of revelation on Fayal's face. So…the reason she acted so afraid was because she was on the verge of a panic attack? Or she was afraid to have one? He was about to ask when she continued.

"Panic Disorder, in its medical definition, is a disorder where one suffers panic attacks when in a heightened state of fear, embarrassment, horror, terror…things like that. Just being around people my age really terrifies me….so I end up having panic attacks." She explained further, eyesight dodging here and there, but never looking at him.

Okay, so it wasn't that she was afraid of having a panic attack. It was the fear of the people _**around**_ her causing her to have a panic attack that scared her, which was understandable. Colby's jacket was scary in its own right, let alone the blonde girl.

Yet, Kyani smiled, her sight turned on the Arcanine behind her. "But Zero's kept me under control. I just go outside and see him whenever I feel like I'm getting a panic attack."

"They let you?" Fayal asked, knowing no one can leave school grounds unless they had a note or something.

Kyani scoffed. "They have to. Nothing else can stop my panic attacks other than my Pokémon. I trust them more than anyone else in this town." She replied, looking over at him, her hand now rubbing the top of Zero's head. "I grew up with them…I know them."

Fayal let out a long and deep sigh. So it wasn't a twin or something at school. It was actually the girl sitting right in front of him. It was actually Kyani. And it wasn't like this was something she could control, like he thought. There was a way to control it…but it wasn't like she wanted this.

No, he thought, no one would. And yet, she managed. She still smiled. So long as she had her Pokémon, he figured, she'd always smile. "You and Zero are pretty close, huh?" He smiled, looking to her, wanting to change the subject a little.

Her smile growing a bit more, she nodded, looking to her big baby. "Yes, I've known him since I was four years old." She told him, laughing at the shocked look on his face. "But I'm that way with all my Pokémon. They're my friends…and that's probably why I get picked on."

Black eyebrows ruffled. "Why do you say that? It's not like Pokémon don't exist here."

She had to agree, giving a slight nod. "Yes, but…the town isn't Pokémon-centered. They don't understand me and what I do, and how important it is…Pokémon is all I know."

It was kind of sad, really, sitting there, watching and listening to her. Kyani wasn't a bad looking girl, she was actually kind of cute, but she was ridiculed because of something she couldn't control and the misunderstanding of others. They didn't even bother to ask her, or get to know her. They just assumed she was weird.

It made Fayal's heart drop a little.

Yet, he smiled at the brunette. "What if I help you?" He'd prove to her that not all people would just pick on her. He'd prove there was some good in humanity.

Turquoise eyes blinked in shock, she looking over at him incredulously.

His smile further widened. "You teach me all you know about Pokémon and help me become a strong trainer like you, and I'll help you with your Panic Disorder."

Kyani couldn't believe it. She leaned back into Zero, still shocked. Why would he….why would someone she barely knows help her like that? Sure, it was a fair trade…but still. It didn't make sense to her. But he seemed pretty adamant on it…so maybe she'd take him up on that.

Maybe she'd take a chance this time.

Chuckling, she looked back over to him, really mulling it over in her mind. "We'll see."

* * *

><p>Hours later, well into the early hours of Saturday morning, Fayal was asleep, Kyani was pretty much there and Zero was pretending to sleep, actually listening for those Houndour they were supposed to run into.<p>

The fire before them had died down to cinders, giving them the cover of near darkness, when Zero's ears perked. There was something heading this way.

Picking his head up, he looked to his master, gently nudging her arm, waking her up. "Arca. Arcanine."

Pushing off of her warm dog, Kyani rubbed one of her eyes, shaking her head to wake up. "I'm up, I'm up." She told him, hearing what he also heard as she began to wake up. "Fayal," She called softly, not wanting to go over and shake him awake. She was too warm next to Zero. "Fayal, wake up."

Hearing his name, the raven did begin to stir, not sure of where he was or what he'd been doing. Only when he shook his head and looked around did he smile. "Are they…" He began, getting up and moving closer to Kyani and Zero, ready to leave in a moment's notice.

Returning his smile, the brunette nodded. "It's time."

Within minutes, the trio had planned and set up their ambush. They'd planned it out hours ago, and Zero was being the perfect decoy, pretending to be a meal for the Houndour pack and leading them to this very spot. Once Fayal saw one, the battle would begin.

Sitting there, waiting, the Ushiwaka could feel his heart racing out of his chest, blue eyes scanning back and forth, back and forth, just waiting. He had to actually think about breathing or else he might have stopped completely.

"Relax." Kyani whispered, crouching beside the raven. She could see he was excited, and that was fine, but he really needed to stay calm. "There's more than one Houndour, so don't get upset if this first one doesn't work out." She reminded him, thinking that might be part of the reason.

Before Fayal could reply that he was much more excited than worried, the very Pokémon he was determined to catch jumped out right in front of them, causing Fayal to stand and Kyani to block its means of escape. "Got you!" He said, throwing out the Pokéball that contained Nox, the Umbreon shaking its body as it stood there, illuminating the dark.

Kyani watched with utmost certainty that Fayal would catch the Houndour – it seemed rather weak and scared. He'd have no trouble whatsoever, which made her smile. Maybe there was some hope in him after all.

Remembering what the brunette had told him, Fayal looked over the situation. "Nox, use quick attack!" He yelled, watching as the Umbreon snapped into action.

And yet, as the raven looked over the hellhound, he ruffled his brows. It was shaking, like it was scared…but Kyani had told him that Houndour were difficult to catch. Wouldn't it be snarling and angry?

There was just something off…and seeing his droopy, tired eyes, and the condition of this Houndour, Fayal couldn't help but call off his attack. "Wait! Uh, Nox…stop!"

As he was trained, Nox stopped and returned to his temporary master, although he was rather confused.

"Fayal!" Kyani cried in confusion and anger. He had a perfect chance! "What are you doing?"

The raven knew she was upset; he could hear it in her voice. "It's hurt! Or something's wrong with it!" He cried back, pointing to the confused Houndour. "I don't want to battle it if it's already hurt! That's not fair to him!"

Turquoise eyes blinked. She'd never once, not ever in all her times of getting a new trainer their first Pokémon ever had someone give that answer. "But it's perfect!" She answered back, keeping her eye on the hellhound. "He's so weak right now, you don't even have to battle him!"

"No," Fayal answered back adamantly. "I'm not going to take advantage of that. That's not fair to him; he's defenseless." He didn't care if it pissed her off and cost him his teachings with her. He wasn't going to do it.

She could see that in his blue eyes. She knew better, and yet, smiled. "Alright then." She relented, walking over to him, Zero joining her side not a minute later. "What do you want to do?"


	3. Verses Houndour

●○●_**Pokémon: Kyanite Version ●○●**_

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><p>Pokémon is owned by Nintendo and Satoshi Tajiri. I own the plot and characters.<p>

The most important note you will read for this story: Please, I cannot stress enough, _**PLEASE**_ respect the fact that I have spent an entire year working on this story. There are blood, sweat, and tears in the characters and their development along with the plotline.

PLEASE THINK BEFORE YOU REVIEW.

I know that things will be confusing, especially with characters you cannot see, so if there is confusion, please PM me. I will do my best to clear up any confusion and answer questions. Other than that, please enjoy! :)

_Name Pronunciation:_ This section will always be included should a new character appear in a chapter and will be done in order of appearance.

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><p><em>Chapter 3 ●○● Verses Houndour<em>

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><p>Kyani had to admit she was impressed. Not once, ever in her years of getting the first Pokémon for new trainers, did the trainer stop a battle when they realized the Pokémon was injured.<p>

It was a first, but it was a good sign.

Even as the trio – along with the injured Houndour that Fayal refused to leave – ran from the pack that hunted them now, she was smiling, watching the raven.

He was honestly unbelievable, yelling against her advice and trying to figure out a peaceful way to end things. He didn't want to take away the freedom of the Houndour when it couldn't rightfully fight for it, which she understood completely. She had the same mentality when she first received Zero from her father all those years ago.

But before either one of them could think about what to do, they found the pack gaining on them, and in a rush, Fayal picked up the slightly struggling Houndour and ran. He didn't know what else to do, and he didn't think Kyani would really help him unless he was in danger.

After all, _**he**_ was the one getting a Pokémon here. Not her. He had to do this on his own.

"You know," The brunette began breathlessly as they dodged the trees and roots they could see in the dark. "he's probably injured because of the pack."

Still holding the injured black pup, Fayal tried his best to keep his feet moving, breathing just as hard as her. "What…what do you mean? Why would they attack one of their own?"

She glanced over, making sure he was alright. The pack was nothing compared to her and Zero, so if she had to defend them, she would. But he looked alright for now. "Pack mentality; survival of the fittest. He probably lost a fight and so the pack expelled him."

Fayal didn't know about the inner workings or personalities of Pokémon, as Kyani did. But he knew it wasn't fair to just attack something if it lost a fight. "Well they're not getting to him. It's not happening." He stated, still out of breath, rather adamantly.

There was no way in hell he was going to leave this Houndour to die. He may be weak, hell, he may have a disease. But he wasn't going to just turn his back on him. Everyone and everything deserved a chance.

Kyani had a hard time holding back a smirk, hearing the conviction in his voice. But before she could suggest catching him to save him and then release him, something happened.

It seemed like the pack had caught up to them finally, a few Houndour biting at Zero's ankles, nearly getting Kyani's if she hadn't jumped up onto the Arcanine who was growing more aggravated by the second.

They were even smart enough to target Zero's left side, successfully separating the newbie and Kyani and Zero.

"It's alright!" The Ushiwaka called out, seeing the concern on Kyani's face. "I'll meet you at the house!" Taking a turn to get away from the Houndour and hopefully get them off his heels, he ran off into the darkness, still holding the injured Houndour in his arms.

But it wasn't enough.

Just as the raven had found the house – he could see its white sidings from in between the trees – something bit down on his ankle, and hard.

Hard enough to drag him down onto his side just as he made it past the trees, the force of the fall making him let go of the injured Houndour, it sliding feet away from the raven. Even some Pokéballs had been dislodged from the raven's person, they bouncing and rolling in all directions. "Damnit!" He cried, knowing his side would be sore in the morning. "Hey, you!" He yelled, turning blue eyes to the injured Houndour that lay only a few feet from him. "Run!"

The hellhound didn't understand. He'd lost his fight – it was time to leave the pack. Why did this human intervene? Why did he take him away and refuse to let him go?

The raven hastily got up, defending his injured Houndour from the one that was currently biting at his ankle. "I said run!" He repeated, glancing back to see his hellhound still lying there, watching him.

Why was he fighting so hard? Why was he fighting so hard for him?

Then, as if hit by a brick, the black pup blinked, a smile appearing across his muzzle, realizing the reason. Struggling to get up, he slipped a few times before finally getting his legs to support him and dragged himself over to one of those capture thingies the raven had lost. Without a second's hesitation, he pressed his nose against the silver button, seeing nothing but a red beam and then finally, being allowed to rest.

Even with the Houndour still biting at him, Fayal stopped, seeing his Houndour choose to go into the Pokéball. Did he just…

He caught his first Pokémon. Well, okay, he caught himself, really…but Fayal owned the Pokéball.

"Back! Get back!" Kyani cried as she ran up, shooing the Houndour that was biting her current trainee away. "Go on, back to your pack!" She yelled, Zero standing right there with her, both sets of eyes almost glaring.

Fayal was too busy staring at the Pokéball to realize that the biting and nipping had gone away, blue eyes focused beyond belief. "I did it…" He mumbled, the thought and feeling finally setting in. He'd finally gotten his own Pokémon.

Convinced the Houndour wasn't coming back, the Willow sighed heavily, brushing her bangs from her left eye. Turning her sight to the raven, she smiled, seeing him inch toward the Pokéball that held his Houndour. "Yes," She answered, walking over to help him up. "you did. Good job."

Fayal didn't refuse the outstretched hand of the brunette, but rather got up on his own, favoring the ankle the hellhound had bitten and dragged him down with. "It's alright," He assured, seeing her concern as she watched him warily. "I'm fine. Well," He smiled, picking up the Pokéball. "I'm happy, actually."

She chuckled, patting him on the back, smiling. "I would be too. Being able to convince a Pokémon to become yours isn't easy, you know." She told him, picking up some of the other Pokéballs he'd lost.

"Really?" He asked, picking up some of the others himself, but making sure he knew which one was his Houndour. He kept that one in his right hand, safe and secure.

She nodded, returning the empty ones to him. They were his now. "It's much harder to convince a Pokémon than to catch one. But come on, let's get you and that Houndour cleaned up." She motioned for the back of the house, keeping her pace slow as the Ushiwaka tested out his ankle.

Yeah, it hurt, but it was totally worth it, the Ushiwaka's smile broad despite his tiredness and the pain from his side and ankle. He'd finally started the long and grueling journey he knew he'd have to get stronger. Then maybe he could go help his dad.

Following the brunette at a slower pace than he would've liked, a thought struck the raven as he made his way up the stairs of the porch. He'd never been into a girls' house.

Well, Kyani lived with her dad – now that he thought about it, he wondered where her mother had gone or what had happened to her because she didn't mention her – but it was just the thought that he was getting invited into the home of a girl.

A girl he hardly knew…but still. It was one of those things that made him try so hard not to blush, even though he could feel he was.

Sliding the large glass door, Kyani moved off to the side, letting the Ushiwaka enter first, then Zero and then finally herself, shutting the door as soon as she was inside. She flipped on the lights a moment later. "I'm going to go ahead and heal up that Houndour and check on his stats. Feel free to grab a snack or something, if you're hungry." She told him, holding her hand out for the Pokéball.

He was happy to hand over his Houndour, stomach growling at the mention of food. He laughed, hearing her chuckle, and rubbed his neck sheepishly. "I guess I am hungry." He chuckled.

Kyani figured as much, smiling. "Kitchen's right in there," She pointed to the doorway on her left, his right. "light switch is on the right."

The raven turned toward it, but not before thanking the brunette. She'd done so much for him. "Thank you, so much."

She shook her head, still giving him a soft smile. "No need for thanks. This is my job." She departed through the doorway behind him with Zero right at her side, he able to see the lights being switched on as she walked.

Turning his attention on the kitchen, Fayal was not surprised to find it rather normal. The house seemed normal on the outside, why wouldn't it on the inside?

It was a small kitchen, white like most, all of its appliances on his left hand side and on the wall across from him, the small round table on his right hand side.

What did strike him as odd was the lack of photos. Not just of Kyani…but of the entire family. The walls were plain white, barren of any trace of photos. He had to figure that maybe something had happened to her mother a few years back and they couldn't stand the sight of pictures, so they removed them.

But if that wasn't the case, wouldn't they want to have pictures with their only daughter? He hadn't outright asked, but it was pretty obvious Kyani was an only child.

Going over to the counter, he grabbed a muffin he hoped was still good and went back to the table, sitting down and opening the delicious mini-cake. There were a lot of things that confused him when it came to Kyani, but he figured that there were just some things that would always confuse him.

For example, the panic disorder. Was it just something she'd gotten from her dad and was apparent through her childhood? She said it started in 9th grade, but did she have it before that?

And if she was afraid of people her own age – probably because of how much ridicule she faced from them rather than their age – why did she seem so relaxed around him? Was it because of Zero? Or was it because of his amazing charm?

He had to chuckle at himself for the last question, knowing it was so farfetched. Sure, the brunette was cute in her own odd little way, but definitely wasn't his type. Granted, he never had a girlfriend to know what his type was – but he didn't want a girl who was shy like she was. That he knew.

Yawning before taking another bite, the Ushiwaka figured that he could find out what his type was another day. He was tired, eyelids becoming heavy with each blink. "What time _**is**_ it?" He asked himself, wondering how late it was.

Looking at the clocks on the microwave and the oven, the raven nearly choked. It wasn't late. No, it was early. Really early. 3:27 am, to be exact. He sighed, rubbing a hand over his eyes and through his hair. "I'm never getting up tomorrow."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that." Kyani began as she made her way into the kitchen, yawning as well. She stayed up late usually, but not this late. "By the way," She began, taking a seat at the table as well. "do you want a nickname for your Houndour?"

Zero followed in just a moment later, sitting next to his master and lying down on the cool tile floor, his head resting on Kyani's feet.

Having just bitten into the mini-cake, Fayal quickly chewed and swallowed, not wanting to talk with his mouth full. "Nickname?" He questioned, furrowing his eyebrows and looking over at the brunette.

She gave a tired smile, feeling just as tired as him. It'd been such a long day. "Yep," She nodded, leaning back in her chair. "just like Nox and Vexare. They're nicknames. All trainers have the ability to name their Pokémon."

It was Fayal's turn to lean back into his chair, setting down his muffin and crossing his arms, eyes drifting away in thought. A nickname. What kind of nickname did he want? Obviously something intimidating, like the hellhound he'd caught.

Blue eyes blinked.

Hellhound. Helly? No, too stupid. But then, just as his brain had caught the link between Houndour and hellhound, it caught yet another link.

There was a very famous hellhound known in older literature, whose name was still known today.

Letting a smile creep back onto his face, blue eyes looked to turquoise, she waiting patiently for his answer. "Cerberus." It may have been a little cliché, but damn it, it was an awesome name and that's what he was going to name him.

Holding the Pokéball in her hand, she glanced down at it, giving a small smile. "Cerberus, huh? I'll make a note of that…" She mumbled before handing the capture device over to its owner.

Fayal ruffled his eyebrows at her words, taking the Pokéball from her hand. "Make a note of it? For what?" He tilted his head, putting it in his pocket and taking yet another bite of his muffin.

Turquoise eyes looked up to blue, she still smiling. "Oh, nothing you need to worry about." She assured. "Now, I want you to go home, eat something and get plenty of rest. You'll need it."

The raven may have not known the Willow long enough to read her face or her voice, but he could clearly see she was trying to hold back a smile, making the raven's heart skip a beat. He tried so hard to wait for her words, smile growing with every second passed.

"Because I want you to come back on Sunday for training." She finished, closing her eyes and smiling a small smile.

He still smiled broadly, knowing what she meant by "training" but had to ask anyway. He had to hear the words right from her mouth. "Training as in…?"

Kyani sighed, her eyes still closed, smile wavering just a little bit. "Training as in I'm going to do my best to teach you everything I know." She stressed her words, making sure he understood. Before he could scream thank yous and get too excited, she continued, opening her eyes to look at the raven. "But remember, I've never taught anyone before, especially about everything I know. It's a lot of information and things you need to remember."

Fayal's smile was still apparent, as well as his excitement, but his demeanor turned serious. "Yes, I understand." He said calmly.

"And you also must understand that there may be times when I have panic attacks. You have to be prepared." Her eyes were just as serious as ever, but they were almost begging him to understand her words. "Being around someone all the time isn't going to be easy on me…especially when it's someone my age, no offence to you."

He put a hand up, lowering his head. "None taken." He looked back to her. "I don't know all about you, or your disorder, but I'll do my best to respect your boundaries and keep myself under control."

Kyani felt a little more assured at his words, knowing from the drama earlier that he was pretty honest. "Stop by anytime on Sunday and we'll go from there….just make sure you get a lot of rest."

He nodded, seeing her relax slightly. "Don't worry, I'll be dead as a rock for the next full day."

The brunette couldn't help but chuckle, raising a hand to her mouth as she yawned, gently shaking her head. "Well, if you don't mind, I'm going to head to bed." She smiled, getting up from her chair, Zero remaining on the floor.

He hastily got up from his chair and cleaned up his mess, throwing away the case and the napkin he used after Kyani pointed out where the garbage can was.

Running a hand through the loose hair around her neck, the Willow looked into another room, sighing. "Hey, Nox," She called out, smiling when the black fox slinked out from the darkness, he come up to sit next to her. "Please walk Fayal home, okay?"

"Kyani," The raven began, chuckling slightly. "it's fine, I can walk myself home." He assured her, smiling. After all, he was a big boy.

She returned her smile, petting her little boy. "Yes, you can," She agreed, nodding. "but on the way over here, you weren't paying attention to where you were going. That and it's pitch black outside. Nox will help you see."

Blue eyes blinked. She knew? How did she know he wasn't paying attention? Letting out a long sigh, he finally closed his eyes and relented. "Alright…"

Before either of the two could say good night, or depart, Kyani looked to her new student with very tired eyes. "This won't be easy, you know." She received a nod from the raven. "But don't quit."

"I won't." He promised, both himself and her. It wouldn't be fair to her to quit after putting her though all of this, and he'd never forgive himself if he quit. "And thank you." He added, a thought slipping into his mind. Usually, when he thanked a girl, he gave her a hug…but would Kyani be alright with that?

It was one of those things he'd have to learn about her, since he didn't know if panic disorder had something against touching, but figured that this time, he'd at least ask.

"Can I give you a hug?" He smiled at her, that very smile falling when her eyes widened slightly and then turned away from his. It was a good thing he asked, then.

She refrained from looking at him, demeanor turning back into the shy Kyani he was more familiar with. "U-uh…I appreciate it," She knew it was just his way of wanting to thank her. "but I-I'd rather you n-not, if that's okay."

It was so odd to Fayal, seeing her revert right in front of his blue eyes, and yet, he smiled. He'd just have to get used to it. "It's fine." He said softly, watching her as she glanced up to him. "Whatever you're comfortable with, teach."

His words made her smile, she sighing as they both began to walk to the back door. "Oh, and for the time being, don't let Cerberus out of his Pokéball unless I or Zero is around, okay?"

Fayal was about to open the door, Nox at his feet, when he stopped and turned back toward her. "Why's that?"

"You're too inexperienced right now, and Cerberus might not obey you. He'll be fine around me because I'm more experienced than you are." She answered. "We can't have anything happening to you before training starts, you know?"

Chuckling, the raven nodded, showing a small smile. "Alright. Don't let Cerberus out." He repeated, hoping he'd remember when he got up sometime later today.

"Yep." She nodded, feeling even more tired as the morning wore on. "Now go on. Good night." She graced him with a smile.

"Night." He returned her smile, wrenching open the door and stepping outside, waiting to shut it until Nox was outside as well. "Let's go home, Nox." He said to the Umbreon, smiling as it departed down the porch steps and turned back, looking to him, waiting for him.

So this is what her life was like; having Pokémon around her constantly, keeping her company. He had to admit as he walked down the steps and followed Nox, seeing him light the way with those yellow rings on his body, it seemed like a pretty damn good life. One, that maybe he'd have soon.

Letting out a sigh, the tired raven couldn't help but feel some bit of excitement in his heart, a soft smile appearing on his lips as Nox turned around to wait for him once again.

Sunday. Sunday was when his journey began.

* * *

><p>Fayal decided it would be best to walk over to Kyani's in the early afternoon, giving both of them more than enough time to eat and at least get dressed, let alone prepare for their first day together.<p>

He had to admit, as he walked, he was getting butterflies in his stomach. Not just because of the fact that this was his first day of training, but he felt anxious as to how Kyani would be.

She should be in normal mode because she's at home, with her Pokémon, and it's only him. It's not like the entire class was there…and it wasn't like he was going to pick on her. Granted, she probably had her fears still, but he'd just take it easy and do his best to stay relaxed around her.

Assuring himself that the Willow would be somewhat normal – even if he didn't know for sure – Fayal's mind continued to wonder about what would happen today, although this time it was about what they were going to be doing.

He knew it was probably a long shot, but he really hoped they'd be battling. It seemed like such an awesome aspect of having Pokémon; being able to control the creatures to do what you will and try to outwit your opponent. It was kind of like checkers, or chess, now that he thought about it.

But those games were boring. They didn't have pawns that spewed lava or shook the earth.

Arriving at the front door of the Willow home, Cerberus in his Pokéball that resided in Fayal's pocket as Kyani had instructed, the raven knocked on the door hesitantly.

He waited for a few minutes, but received no answer.

Deciding that maybe the brunette was busy with something, he set his hand on the doorknob, checking to see if she'd left it unlocked for him. He smiled slightly when the knob turned. But the smile was short lived – after all, he didn't want to just traipse into her home. "Umm…Kyani? Zero? Are you guys home?" He called after opening the door, looking inside the home.

"It's alright, you can come in." The brunette's calm voice answered back.

Smile returning, the raven stepped inside, making sure to take off his shoes and shut the door behind him. When that was done, he turned, going through the small mud room, already able to see the living room.

It was incredibly large for a living room, probably the size of the house. The windows were on his left, along with a nice sized fireplace, and a coffee table in the middle of the room. To the right of that very coffee table were Kyani and Zero, a couch and then some stairs behind her. The door way to the kitchen and the room that connected to the porch was also on the right hand side, he able to see them clearly.

Unfortunately, he really couldn't see the color of the floor, since there were books and papers littered everywhere.

Seeing his face as she looked up from her work, Kyani took off her glasses, smiling a nervous smile. "Yeah, sorry. It's a mess." She said, looking back to the room.

He couldn't help but chuckle, trying to make his way over to her. "I see that."

She cleared a spot for him to sit down at the coffee table rather hastily, piling up the stack of papers on her right side. "Go ahead and let Cerberus out, too." She told him, patting the spot she'd cleared for him.

The raven did both, sitting and fishing in his pocket for the tiny device, maximizing it and holding it out. "I don't say anything…do I?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. If he did, that would be so lame.

It was Kyani's turn to chuckle, she shaking her head. "No, you do not." She laughed a bit when he breathed a sigh of relief.

Not a second later did the Houndour come out of his Pokéball, immediately shaking out his fur and prancing over to Kyani, wanting to sit in her lap. Realizing that Zero's massive head was already taking up the space, he sat beside her, back against her thigh.

Fayal watched his Pokémon in amusement and a bit of confusion. Cerberus was _**his**_ Pokémon, wasn't he? It had to be because of her experience. Or maybe the hellhound was a suck up. "So…" He began, looking over to his new teacher. "what are we doing today?" He saw her smile, and before she could speak, asked, "Battling? Are we battling?"

Kyani had to suppress the urge to laugh, her left hand reaching down to Zero's tan ears, rubbing them as he slept on her lap. "No," She answered, smiling and looking over to him. "we're learning today. You need to crawl before you can walk."

The Ushiwaka did feel a bit disappointed – after all, battling was awesome – but, knowing that she was at least sticking to her word and teaching him wasn't disappointing. He watched as she grabbed a few pieces of paper from her mess, unsure of how she was differentiating because she didn't even bother looking at them.

Handing him the papers, she gave him a pencil as well, left hand returning to pet Cerberus this time. "Today is all about types. The sheet on top of that packet will help you learn them as you do the packet." She explained, seeing him flip through the sheets.

Okay, so it was just packet work. Now he felt a bit disappointed. It was just like doing homework and everyone hated homework.

"So far, from what we have gathered from our Pokémon friends," She continued, looking between her papers and the raven. "we've found that there are 17 different types of Pokémon."

Blue eyes watched her, raising a hand to stop her before she went further. "What is exactly is a "type"?" He asked, making sure he understood everything. He wasn't going to fail at this because he didn't understand one simple term.

Kyani sighed, remembering that Fayal knew nothing about Pokémon. She had to put everything in simplest terms for him. "A "type" is a specific placement or group that helps trainers and professors classify Pokémon." She answered, looking over to him. "Make sense?"

He nodded.

"These types are;" Using both hands, even at the growl of Cerberus who wanted her to keep petting him, she counted them off on her fingers. "Fire, Water, Grass, Electric, Flying, Bug, Rock, Ground, Steel, Dragon, Psychic, Dark, Normal, Fighting, Ice, Ghost and Poison."

Blue eyes had to blink and stare at his brunette counterpart. She just recited them by _**memory**_. "They sound like elements." He mumbled, still amazed that she knew all of them without looking at any papers.

She nodded, hearing his mumble. "They're based on the elements, as Pokémon's abilities are. Along with that, each type has a gene in the DNA that makes them a fire type." She knew this would confuse him, already seeing his eyebrows furrow and continued before he could ask her what that meant. "For example, Zero here, is a pure fire type," She said, petting his head. "And Cerberus is a dual Fire/Dark type. Because of the fact that they're both fire types, they have a shared gene in their DNA."

Fayal closed his mouth, his question being answered. That certainly made sense, even if everyone's DNA was different. They had some similarities, and that was proven in the type they were. "And that works for each type?" He asked further.

The brunette nodded, smiling. He was starting to catch on quicker than she thought. "Yes, it does."

Counting off of his fingers this time, blue eyes looked up in thought. "So each Pokémon has a specific type," One finger. "and they have a shared gene depending on what type they are." Two fingers. "Pokémon can have more than one type, then? Since Cerberus is a…"

"Dark and Fire type." Kyani substituted, nodding. "Exactly. But they can only have up to two types. No Pokémon has more than two types." She explained. "As you get more experience as a trainer and see more Pokémon, you'll be able to tell what type they are right off the bat."

Having been looking at his sheet, the one with all the types listed, Fayal looked to the brunette incredulously. "Really?" He asked, assuming that sometimes you could tell. Like with Vexare…if he had known about types, he probably would have known she was an electric type.

Kyani nodded, her hand returning to pet both Cerberus and Zero, turquoise eyes looking to his packet. "Yes, but that's one of those things you'll learn as you see more Pokémon, so don't worry about that." She told him, shaking her head. "Now, I just want you to start with the basics…" She flipped back a page in his packet. "This one here…Just work with these three."

He looked to the paper, finding that the only three types were Fire, Water and Grass. "Just three?" He questioned, glancing over to her. That seemed so simple. Too simple, really.

Looking back to her own work, Kyani nodded, smiling. "Yes, just those three."

Letting out a long sigh, Fayal shrugged his shoulders. The Willow knew what she was doing, he didn't; it was as simple as that, and as long as she was teaching him, he'd do pretty much anything she told him.

Blue eyes looked over this paper, noting that it had a colored diagram of the three elements on it. Each element had its respective color and a picture of that element. Fire was a red fire with a red arrow pointing to Grass, which was green grass and also had an arrow pointing to Water, which was a blue tear drop and had an arrow pointing to Fire.

"It's a cycle." He spoke in the silence, blinking as he realized it. It was a never ending cycle between the three elements.

Kyani looked up from her work, nodding. "Exactly." She explained as he looked up to her. "Every type has a weakness to another type. That's what the first sheet is for." She told him, motioning to go back and look at the page. "There is no type that is stronger than another."

Fayal ruffled his eyebrows, looking over this chart to find that she wasn't lying, which was good. He definitely didn't want a teacher who would lie to him. "So…" He began, raising a hand and scratching his head. "If every type has a weakness…how do trainers beat each other? Wouldn't they just play to their advantages, which would cause the opponent to play to that advantage and…" Fayal's voice trailed off, his head beginning to hurt.

That did make sense, didn't it? If he had a Fire type out on the field, and his opponent played a Water type, he'd withdraw his Fire type and play a Grass type. But then they'd withdraw and play a Fire type.

He looked to Kyani for an answer.

"That's what levels, strategy, and having a good bond with your Pokémon is for." She answered simply. "But that's another lesson for another day. For right now, I just want you to understand the types and their strengths and weaknesses, okay?" She asked, looking over to him in concern. "I know it's a lot of material."

Nevertheless, he smiled at her. "It's fine, really…I'll learn it." The raven assured, recounting what he had to do for today. Learn the types and their strengths and weaknesses. That seemed simple enough.

"It's not homework, but there's a worksheet with questions and such, to help you learn." She told him, reaching out to grab her glasses and a pencil for her own work. She wasn't just going to sit there all day and watch him. "And you can always ask me for help."

Looking from the brunette to the packet, he nodded, flipping through it to see it was entirely handwritten. Slowly, he let his gaze lift back up to her, seeing that she had already started working on whatever it was that she had.

She'd handwritten the entire packet for him to do. Not just that, but she'd even given hints and tricks to help him remember some things.

A smile took Fayal's lips, he shaking his head. He didn't care what he'd been told before, about Kyani being a bitch, weird, or odd. Yes, she was odd, and yes, she was weird. But if she went and handwrote an entire packet with tips and tricks, he couldn't say she was a bitch. She couldn't be as mean as Malachi made her out to be.

She was so different than what everyone assumed her to be.

Picking up his pencil to begin his own work, the raven couldn't help but glance over to her, wondering what the hell she was doing. "And what are you doing?" He asked curiously, keeping his sight on his packet but stealing a glance or two at the brunette beside him.

"The math homework we got." She answered flatly, her attention focused on it completely. She had even stopped petting Zero and Cerberus.

Okay, now he had to look up to the brunette. "You didn't finish it already?" He'd imagine with how smart she was, she'd have it done within minutes!

Kyani shook her head. "No," She answered him, glancing away from the worksheet. "I'm not good at math."

"I can hel – "

She looked up, giving him a smile. "You've got your work to do." Yet, her voice wasn't one he wanted to argue with or upset.

The raven relented, returning his sight to his own papers and taking a deep breath before getting to work on them. She was right, after all. He couldn't spend his time helping her – although he would if she asked. He had to focus on all this Pokémon stuff.

He had to learn to crawl before he could walk.

* * *

><p>And yet, as much as Fayal wanted to learn as much as he could when it came to types, it was really hard with Kyani sitting next to him. Not that he was embarrassed he was in a girl's house, or that there was a girl next to him – it was her actions that were bothering him.<p>

About an hour into their lesson, the brunette began to sigh, rather loudly, in frustration and began to cross things out on her paper.

Fayal knew he shouldn't try to intervene and that he should focus on his own work…but it was so hard with her crossing things out every two minutes! He knew she was upset about whatever problem she was on, but it was seriously distracting.

Kyani knew this, but she really didn't care. The raven was a big boy, he could tune her out, her head already aching from all this nonsense, like she cared about it anyway. Setting her pencil down, she closed her tired eyes and set her head in her hands, rubbing her face.

Blue eyes saw this, and couldn't help but feel sympathetic toward her. Math wasn't his strong suit, either. "Do you want any help?" He asked softly, still looking over to her.

He could see a small smile appear at the corners of her mouth, but it vanished. "No, thank you." She answered, shaking her head and looking over to him, and then her paper. "I just need a…break."

Before Fayal could suggest getting something to eat or even just relaxing, the brunette tapped Zero's ears, making him get up as she stood, quickly going around her baby, around the couch, through the kitchen and out the back door for her "break".

The raven sighed, not sure of what to do. After all, he wasn't sure of how to calm the Willow…and he wasn't sure she wanted him to calm her down at all. They barely knew each other… So he decided, he'd wait a bit, and if she wasn't back, he'd claim to be having trouble and then offer to help her.

Well, within that few minutes, Zero yawned, showing those very large and sharp teeth of his before standing and following his master to the backdoor. Within seconds of Zero leaving, Cerberus also yawned and got up.

"Well." Fayal began flatly, looking around the room. "This is exciting." Putting his own pencil down, he decided it was time to see what the brunette was up to, and got up, stretching a bit before going to the back door.

He had to shake his head and chuckle, seeing both dogs sitting at the door patiently – although he was sure Zero could probably just knock the door right out and follow if he wanted to – waiting for Kyani to come back. Maneuvering around the dogs, he pulled open the sliding door, allowing them to head out first, and then walked out, shutting the door behind him.

Once again, the backyard greeted him with its stunning view, a refreshing breeze blowing the raven's shaggy hair around. He noticed that the dogs enjoyed it too, standing there on the porch with him before departing down the steps and to the barn Fayal had seen a couple days ago.

Following the Arcanine down the pathway to the barn, Fayal ruffled his eyebrows and stopped when the dog stopped. "So she's down that way, huh?" He asked the large orange fluff ball, getting a nod in return.

Shrugging his shoulders as to why Zero wouldn't go any further – nor did Cerberus for that matter – the Ushiwaka continued down the path, and through the barn, noting all the stalls and hay.

He was about to ask himself if there were horses around, but found that when he exited the barn on the other side, he answered his own question. There were definitely horses, and a lot of them.

But they were probably Pokémon. Yeah, most likely.

Because they were on fire.

Taking note of his newfound knowledge, the raven deduced that they were fire types, and figured the flames were probably very hot, as most fire was. "Alright…well, Zero was looking this way, so Kyani has to be around here somewhere." He mumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets.

It was kind of amazing, watching all these Pokémon as they grazed and played around, their fire manes glittering in the sunlight, the breeze blowing, the quiet of the forest save for the singing and chirping of all the Pokémon around. It just reminded Fayal how jealous he was of this place.

What he wouldn't give to live in a place like this, with Pokémon and next to no city sounds. He hated them. He imagined Kyani hated them too, since she lived in this peaceful atmosphere all the time. The hubbub and rush of the school life was probably really stressful and annoying to her.

Coming up to the very last of the few paddocks, the raven stopped at the fence line, blue eyes landing on one of the largest fire-horse Pokémon he'd ever seen, even though he'd seen these things for the first time in his life, and Kyani, leaning on it.

The first thought through his mind was how in the hell was she not getting burned. The horse was on _**fire**_. How could she be so close to it without getting burned? "Well, I guess I'll just have to ask." He said, smiling as he jumped over the fence and slowly made his way over to her.

The horse picked up his head as soon as Fayal's feet hit the ground, it staring at him before gently nudging Kyani with its nose.

"Oh, come on, Ardor," Kyani pretty much pleaded with him, feeling so relaxed, leaning against the off-white horse. "Let me relax a minute…" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, smile forming on her lips.

He burred very loudly, nudging her once more, this time, reaching up to the loose strands of her hair, nibbling on them gently.

Kyani couldn't figure out why Ardor was bothering her so much, especially now. He'd never bothered her when she came to lean against him before, choosing to stand and graze like he always did.

It became rather clear when Fayal finally cleared his throat loud enough for the brunette to hear.

When she turned around to see him, he glanced away for just a moment, wondering if he made the wrong decision. Maybe she didn't want him to go find her…after all, he just kind of traipsed through her entire backyard. "…Hey."

"Hey." The brunette replied, giving him a rather soft look before sighing. "Look, I'm sorry for just walking out like that…" She knew it was a childish thing to do, but she really did need a break.

The raven knew this, shaking his head. "It's cool…I kinda figured you were frustrated." He gave a small smile, shrugging his shoulders. "And you know…If you ever need help with math, I'm not half bad at it…"

Kyani gave him a smile, knowing it was just the raven's nature to want to help. And she appreciated it, she really did. She sighed softly once again and looked away. "You know something, Fayal?" Turquoise eyes looked to blue. "I honestly don't care about any of the things they try to teach us in school. I really appreciate the offer, but I don't care that I'm pretty much failing all of my classes."

Fayal ruffled his eyebrows, mouth opening just a little in surprise. It didn't make any sense to him. Kyani seemed like a damn genius when it came to Pokémon…why, how could she be failing most of her classes? "…but…you're so smart when it comes to Pokémon."

She gave him a small smile. "Because Pokémon is all I know." She saw the look of realization on his face. "My mother only ever taught me the basics, Fayal…"

The raven sighed, hands in his pockets as he moved a little closer, blue eyes watching the fire-horse very carefully. "Well, I can help you with that. Seriously. I don't mind."

Kyani had to sigh once again. He really was persistent, wasn't he? "I can't ask anymore of you than I already have." She told him, still leaning against Ardor. "You've already offered to help me with my panic disorder and that's going to a mountain in and of itself."

"Yes," He agreed, nodding. "but you're doing so much for me right now, there is no possible way I could ever thank you. So let me help you." He didn't dare look away from her, keeping his blue eyes on hers.

The brunette had to look away. Those blue eyes were so convincing, if she had kept her sight with his, she would've caved. All in all, it really did seem like a lot to ask of him, especially because she hardly knew him! How was she to know he would just take what he wanted from her and then go back on his word?

That's what everyone else usually did. But him, even so far, had at least offered to help, which was more than most even thought about.

Pouting slightly, Kyani looked back to the raven, figuring, if he was going to at least offer, she could at least take a chance. "Okay…fine."

Fayal couldn't help but smile, able to see the small smile hiding behind her pout. "Now that that's done, can you please explain how the hell you aren't melting or on fire?" He pleadingly asked, pointing to the very red flames of the horse she was leaning on.

The Willow chuckled, letting her smile show as she pushed off the horse and reached out for the raven, grabbing his arm and pulling him closer. "Fayal, this is Ardor." She introduced, able to sense his hesitation. "He is a Rapidash."

The raven was hesitant; the horse was huge! He towered over Kyani, more than Zero did! But he didn't seem too concerned with the raven standing close to the brunette, or the raven just being close to him. He looked more concerned with the grass. "He's a Fire type, right?" He looked to his teacher.

Kyani knew it was pretty obvious, but she smiled, nodding. "Yes, he's a Fire type. He is a Draft Rapidash, meaning that he's used more for work than for riding and such." She explained as Ardor continued to graze. "But here, he's allowed to relax as much as he wants, just like the rest of the herd."

The Ushiwaka had seen the other horse Pokémon, but something was different between them. He ruffled his eyebrows, looking over Ardor, trying to pinpoint the difference.

"It's the horn and taller build." The brunette told him, seeing the confused expression on his face. "Rapidashes are the evolved form of a Ponyta. Ponyta don't have horns, and are less muscular than Rapidash." She explained, pointing over to the two Ponyta Fayal had seen playing. "I take care of all of them during the summer."

"As intimidating as this one is…" Fayal began, still in awe at the fact that Ardor's shoulder was at the same height as Fayal himself, meaning his head went above Fayal's head. "they're beautiful."

The brunette nodded. "Most Rapidash are, because of their manes." She said, looking over to him and smiling at the look on his face. "Go ahead and pet him." She continued, voice soft.

A black eyebrow rose. "But…won't it…burn?" He asked hesitantly, slowly drawing his sight away from the horse to her.

Kyani wore a playful smile, – if Fayal was seeing right – her eyes on his. "What?" She asked, tilting her head slightly. "Don't you trust me?"

If it had been anyone else, at any other time, the raven would've backed out. There were so many things he did not know about Kyani, it wasn't even funny. He didn't know about her mother, about her panic disorder or how to help, about her favorite foods and colors and movies, and things he'd probably get to know.

But the one most proven fact was that Kyani knew what she was doing when it came to Pokémon. Fayal could see that even if he was blind.

And despite how much his brain told him not to step closer and set his hands on the fire mane of the Draft Rapidash in front of him, the raven did just that, closing his eyes tight to expect a burning, hot feeling.

Blue eyes opened slowly when he felt the hard bone of Ardor's back, looking in complete shock and confusion as his hands sat inside the fire mane of the Rapidash. "It's warm." He spoke. "And it's….it's fluttering. It's not like fire at all."

Kyani came up beside the Ushiwaka, leaning on the fire horse, smiling a large smile. "And you were nervous."

He looked over at her, also smiling, but feeling his face turn red. "Well yeah!" He yelled. "It's fire! Fire equals burning!" He couldn't believe how different this was, how it felt against his hands.

"You need to trust me, Fayal. You asked me to teach you, and sometimes the best form of teaching is to experience it firsthand." She told him, turquoise eyes looking up to blue.

As if he were laughing, Ardor burred rather loudly, picking up his head and looking at the brunette.

Kyani looked to the fire horse, laughing and pushing his muzzle away. "Oh, don't you laugh at me!" She yelled, shaking her head at him.

He lifted his head a few times, as if laughing at her some more and stretched his neck to nibble on her hair again, tugging on it gently before running away, bucking and kicking.

"No, no, you get back here!" The brunette cried happily, running after the Rapidash, laughing and smiling the entire way.

The raven, having jumped when Ardor ran suddenly, caught his bearings and watched Kyani run after the horse, the two of them..._**playing**_. Never in a million years would he have thought that you could play with Pokémon.

Putting his hands back into his pockets, Fayal continued to watch, smiling. This girl was so strange. She was shy and horribly unsocial at school, and now, she was laughing and playing with a Pokémon who could easily crush her like she were a child playing with her friends.

It was amazing, really, how strange of a person Kyani was; alluring, really.

Every instance with the brunette always left Fayal wondering about this and that, always wanting him to find out more about her.

When Kyani finally decided to return, even though she really didn't want to, they returned to the house, Zero and Cerberus still waiting for the two of them. They went right back to their respective spots, Zero still setting his head in Kyani's lap, Cerberus right next to her.

"Okay, so show me what you're having problems with." Fayal began, looking at the papers she'd discarded.

Kyani first took a deep breath, trying to calm her heart down after all that running around. She needed it though. "It's this one." She told him, handing him the sheet with all the questions on it while pulling some loose hair behind her ear. "I just can't figure it out."

Now, because of how smart he knew Kyani was, the Ushiwaka was honestly expecting to see a calculus-type problem that was out of his league and she was just complaining about not being able to do it because it was difficult. But he was sorely wrong.

Kyani wasn't lying when she said she was horrible with math. She was so far behind them in class, he had to hide the shock on his face to keep her from getting discouraged.

"Okay, this is pretty simple stuff…" He was actually good at this. "You have a quadratic equation, something we call the Difference of Squares." He told her, setting down the sheet and showing her what he was talking about.

"Difference of Squares?" She asked, looking over to him, who sighed.

No, Kyani certainly wasn't lying. "If you take this," He said, pointing to (x-3)2. "and square it, you'll get this." He pointed to the first equation written, x2-9. "Because 9 is a perfect square root, we call this equation Difference of Squares, because you're subtracting."

The brunette sighed softly to herself. This wasn't so bad…yet. "Okay, but then how do you solve it?"

Picking up the pencil she'd given him before, he solved the problem, showing her every step and explaining every question she had. "Because (x-3)2 is the same as (x-3) multiplied by itself, we only have to solve (x-3). To do that, you take away the parenthesis and set it equal to zero, like this."

Turquoise eyes watched intently, seeing the raven write x-3 = 0. "Then you add the 3, right?" She asked, looking over to him.

Okay, so she wasn't completely hopeless. He nodded, giving her a smile. "Yep, so x equals 3." He could see the smile appear and widen on her face, but spoke before she could. "You should try a few just in case, okay?"  
>She knew she really shouldn't get her hopes up, but nodded, taking the paper from him. "Alright, I will."<p>

It stayed that way for a while, Kyani working on math problems with Fayal checking each one and explaining what she didn't understand, while Fayal worked on the different types, he getting her help and explanations as well.

When she finally felt confident that they'd both done enough work wise, Kyani had Cerberus sit up, making sure he was listening to her. "Now, Cerberus, I want you to be good for your master, do you understand?" She instructed, watching as he nodded. "He's going to report everything back to me, so if you're not good…"

The Houndour nodded yet again, assuring her that he'd be good.

"Wait," Fayal began, in a bit of alarm. "I can let him out of his Pokéball tonight?" He asked, a half smile on his face.

She looked up to him, a small smile on her face. "He'll be rowdy and difficult…but if you keep him in your room, you shouldn't have too much of a problem." She told him, shaking her head and then looking very sternly at the pup. "But if he does cause a problem…don't be afraid to call me and I'll come right over."

Cerberus looked in between the brunette and his master in nervousness, wondering if he really would call her.

"You can count on it." Fayal told her, watching as the hellhound's ears lowered sadly. Well, at least he knew that the pup might possibly obey him.

Letting out a yawn and stretching out her arms, Kyani then looked to the raven, giving him another smile. "You should head home…work on forming a bond and a friendship with Cerberus, here." She said, patting the dog's head. "It is the most important thing you'll ever do with a Pokémon."

The way she stressed her words made Fayal nod in silence, knowing that if she stressed it, it was extremely important. "Okay, I will. Come on, Cerberus."

The two teenagers got up, both dogs following their respective owners, Kyani and Zero showing Fayal and Cerberus to the door, bidding good bye and planning their next training session. He had no problems leaving her home, now knowing the route between his home and hers, Cerberus still obeying as he walked alongside the raven happily.

Yet, before he could get too far away, blue eyes looked back toward the Willow Manor, stealing just a glance to his teacher, expecting her to be watching him and waving, as he left her.

Kyani wasn't waving at all – she wasn't even looking toward him. Her face was buried into Zero's fur, the crown of his head nuzzling against her chest, her smile shown when she laid against the Arcanine.

Even from this distance, Fayal could hear the growls that Zero gave, figuring that he was growling because he was happy. And it was pretty obvious that she was happy, too, just standing there like that with him.

Turning back to walk home, the brunette's last words to him were buzzing around his mind.

"Work on forming a bond and a friendship with Cerberus, here….it's the most important thing you'll ever do with a Pokémon."

Their bond was so strong, hers and Zero's. He could see it just by looking at them, he looking down to the pup that still walked in stride with him.

Maybe someday he'd have a bond like that with his Pokémon too.

* * *

><p>Fayal recalled Cerberus to his Pokéball before entering his home, not sure of how he'd react to having the run of the house, especially with his little sister around. He really wanted a Pokémon, but he'd never forgive one for hurting his little sister.<p>

He spent the rest of his afternoon with his mom and sister, laying around and spending time with his family before finally retiring to his room for the night.

It took a bit of time to prepare his room for the Houndour, he putting breakable things up high so that they wouldn't break and making sure there was nothing he could get hurt on. After all, there wasn't a point in letting him out if he was just going to get hurt.

So finally, when the raven deemed his room ready, he took a deep breath and released his Houndour, half expecting the pup to go completely crazy and destroy his room.

Instead, the hellhound blinked and shook, full-body, before sitting down and looking around the room. "Hoooouuunnd." He yawned, locking eyes with his master and then stretching. He slowly got up and began to walk around, sniffing the things in Fayal's room.

Blue eyes watched approvingly, amazed, although he didn't show it. He didn't want Cerberus to think that he was shocked the pup was being good. He honestly didn't expect him to be this good. "This is your new home, Cerberus." He said, crouching to the hellhound's level.

Cerberus looked at his master when he spoke, nodding just afterword before continuing his journey around the room. He'd never been in a human's room, and it smelled so weird.

Despite how well things were going, Fayal kept a very keen eye on his Pokémon, not sure if he was just being good because Kyani told him to or because he wanted the raven to lower his guard…

The Houndour certainly had fun smelling all these new smells, first going over to the book bag where there were a lot of scents and then over to the dresser. He finally made his way over to the bed and stuck his nose underneath it, taking a nice whiff. "Hound," He mumbled, finding nothing interesting under there. But… that bed post….

The Ushiwaka watched, feeling a bit more relaxed, as the Houndour sneezed after pulling out his muzzle from underneath his bed. He even chuckled.

But the thought of this all going well went right down the toilet. And fast.

As soon as Cerberus made his way over to Fayal's wooden bedpost, he sniffed it, and opened his jaws, clamping down on the wooden post, leaving deep teeth marks.

"Cerberus, no!" The raven cried, scrambling over and shooing the puppy away, knowing his mother would kill him when she saw those marks.

Running away, the Houndour then went over to his master's desk, a devilish glint in his eye. He propped himself up, looking at all the lovely papers that so very quickly needed shredded and burned. So, without hesitation, he pulled all of them down, gently burning each paper.

Fayal was quick to see all of his homework burning on the floor. "No!" He cried further, lunging over and attempting to grab Cerberus.

Downstairs, Fiori and her mother sat in the living room, both looking up at the sudden thumps and crashes from upstairs.

"Momma, I'm gonna check on Fay-fay." The youngest Ushiwaka said, getting up from her seat and running up the stairs, wondering what in the world her brother was doing.

Honestly. She knew older brothers were annoying, but did he really have to make all that silly noise over a Pokémon? And an ugly one at that.

"Fayal?" She asked, having finally reached her brother's room and knocking on the closed door. "Is everything okay in there?"

Inside the room, both Cerberus and Fayal looked to the door, Cerberus in delight and Fayal in horror. Fiori – nor himself at the time – knew the horror that Cerberus was…and if she opened the door, he was bound to do something that would hurt her. Fayal knew it. "Fiori, don't open the door, you hear me?"

Her brother's voice sounded really serious and concerned, but Fiori didn't really care, nor did she think he was really serious. "Fay-fay, don't treat me like a kid!" She yelled, setting her hand on the knob and opening the door anyway.

Blue eyes could only watch in horror as his tiny little sister opened the door, Cerberus trotting right over to her with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. "Fi – " His voice cut horribly short when Cerberus did the most unexpected thing.

Seeing the little girl standing there, the hellhound promptly went up to her and sat down, his tongue still hanging out of his mouth. He perked his ears up when she looked at him, he whining softly at her. "Houuunn…"

A smile appeared on the younger Ushiwaka's face. "Awww," She cooed, walking closer to the Pokémon. "what a good puppy!" She cried, setting her hands on the Houndour's ears, petting it.

Cerberus wagged his tail, getting up and walking closer to the girl, licking her hands whenever she would let him.

Fayal couldn't believe it. That little suck up! It wasn't that he was being good for Kyani – although he probably was – he was just a suck up when it came to women!

Letting out a heavy sigh, the elder brother got up and walked over to the puppy, thankful that he knew Cerberus wouldn't hurt her. "Yes, he's a good puppy, isn't he?" He nearly growled, seeing the pup shoot him a glare.

Now knowing that the Houndour was only good around women and girls, Fayal knew this wasn't going to be easy. Glancing back to his poor homework and bedpost, the raven knew that he'd have to work extra hard.

After all, he wasn't a girl, and he wasn't going to let this little puppy get the better of him.


End file.
